validiTEE

validiTEE - Validation of Trial-based Economic Evaluations

This project aims to understand what “validity” means in economic evaluations that are conducted alongside clinical trials and to begin developing practical guidance for best practice. In this setting, we understand validation as a careful check by health economists to ensure that the analysis, its code, and the assumptions behind it are correct and make sense before the results are shared. While there are established frameworks for validating economic models, such as those used by the CDA-AMC, no similar approach exists for trial-based analyses. This project is the first step towards creating a tool to help researchers check and improve the quality of economic evaluations conducted alongside trials.  

i. Conduct targeted literature reviews, including grey literature to identify existing validation approaches in economic evaluation. If necessary, we will expand the scope to include validation frameworks in clinical trials more broadly.

ii. Recruit and involve key stakeholders in pre-Delphi discussions to refine the scope of validation and discuss concerns before launching Round 1 of the Delphi survey.

iii. Design the Round 1 Delphi survey, informed by literature findings and stakeholder input.

iv. Prepare a larger grant application to carry out the full Delphi study, establishing consensus on key validation items. This will outline the Delphi methodology, including expert selection, iterative rounds with controlled feedback, anonymity, and structured consensus methods such as ranking, rating scales, and thematic analysis where applicable.