I studied economics at the University of Aberdeen and at the University of York. My first post was as a research fellow in health economics at the University of York. I then returned to Aberdeen first as a lecturer in economics and then as a senior research fellow, reader and professor in the Health Economics Research Unit (HERU). I was director of HERU 1993-2000. I have been a professor of health economics in the faculty of Public Health & Policy at LSHTM since 2004.
I have been a member of the NICE diagnostics advisory committee since 2020. I was previously a member of the NICE technology appraisal committee 2003-2020 and the Scottish Medicines Consortium 2003-2009. I am currently a member of the NIHR advanced fellowships selection committee and have previously been a member of the NIHR HTA commissioning board, policy research unit panel, research support service – independent selection committee and research methods panel.
Affiliations
Centres
Teaching
My main teaching activities in 2022-23 were as a lecturer on MSc Public Health modules Introduction to Health Economics, Economic Evaluation and Environmental Health Policy, and as a tutor on the distance learning module Economic Evaluation. I also taught on the Economic Analysis for Health Policy, Health Services and the DrPH Evidence-based Public Health Policy modules.
Research
My two main research interests concern the use of economic evaluation to inform healthcare decision-making and the measurement of health preferences and outcomes. NICE health technology appraisals are a rich source of examples of the use of economics to inform decision-making. Recent studies I have undertaken with others include: the use of real-world data in appraisals on oncology medicines, the operation of the Cancer Drugs Fund and the use by NICE of decision modifiers. Recent preference studies on which I have collaborated include: a comparison of blood donors’ revealed and stated preferences, a contingent valuation study conducted with children and their parents, and using best-worst scaling to elicit head and neck cancer patients’ preferences.
I have participated in a wide range of economic evaluations, including: smoking cessation, tranexamic acid in bleeding trauma patients, mammographic screening, early infant HIV diagnosis and treatment, HCV treatment, surveillance after treatment for head and neck cancer, organisation of blood donation, post-abortion family planning, screening for persistent hepatitis E, antenatal anti-D prophylaxis, imaging strategy for acute stroke, treatment of childhood empyema, screening for open-angle glaucoma, surgical treatment of uterine fibroids, reclaiming hazardous waste sites, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and 20 MPH zones.
Selected Publications
