Short course: Using Discrete Choice Experiments in Health Economics

This course is taught by researchers from the Preference And ValuE (PAVE) research theme at HERU, University of Aberdeen.

The most recent Aberdeen course took place from 24th-26th September 2024 and was fully booked. 

The course fee includes teaching material, accommodation, all lunches, a course welcome reception and dinner.

The course lasts for three full days, with a course meal at the end. Accommodation is provided for four nights (Monday - Thursday).

Details of future courses will be posted when available.

The course presenters are:

Professor Mandy Ryan

Mandy developed the course and has presented it since 2003 in Aberdeen, and has ran similar courses in Banff, Cape Town and Rotterdam.

Mandy is the Director of the Health Economics Research Unit. Her research has focused on developing methods of valuation in health economics, with a focus on discrete choice experiments and contingent valuation. Mandy has worked with academics, government and the pharmaceutical industry and has published widely in the field of health economics generally, and monetary valuation more specifically.

Professor Verity Watson

Verity developed the course and has taught it since 2003 in Aberdeen, and has run similar courses in Banff, Rotterdam, Berlin and Munich.  

Verity worked at HERU for over 20 years and is now an Honorary Professor at the University. Verity's expertise is non-market valuation using contingent valuation and discrete choice experiments. Her research focuses on testing the validity of non-market valuation methods and how study context can influence responses.

Verity has applied these methods to inform a range of policy issues. In doing so she has worked with academics from a number of different fields, the government and the pharmaceutical industry.

Dr Luis Loría Rebolledo

Luis leads the Preference and ValuE (PAVE) research theme in HERU. He joined HERU in 2016 and, since then, has taught on the course in both Aberdeen and Canada. Luis' research focuses on the use of stated preference methods to value non-market goods and services in health and environment. Luis also has an interest in the use of reference-dependent choice models and has taken part in the design of DCEs that apply these in the health and environmental economics field.

Mélanie Antunes                                                                                                           

Mélanie joined HERU in 2018 and, having successfully defended her PhD thesis, is a Research Assistant in the Preference and ValuE (PAVE) theme, working on various stated preferences projects. Mélanie's PhD focused on public and patient preferences for social prescribing in Scotland. She joined the course as an assistant in 2022 and as a presenter in 2024.

This course is a collaboration between HERU and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health, University of Calgary.

The most recent course ran from 20th - 22nd February 2024 in the Banff Centre, Banff, Canada. The next course will take place in 2026. More details will be posted when available. For any enquiries, please contact Cassandra McLaughlin at the O'Brien Institute for Public Health. 

The Banff, Canada, course presenters are:

Professor Mandy Ryan

Mandy Ryan developed the course and has taught it since 2003 in Aberdeen, and has run similar courses in Banff, Cape Town and Rotterdam. 

Mandy is the Director of the Health Economics Research Unit. Her research has focused on developing methods of valuation in health economics, with a focus on discrete choice experiments and contingent valuation. Mandy has worked with academics, government and the pharmaceutical industry and has published widely in the field of health economics generally, and monetary valuation more specifically.

Professor Verity Watson

Verity developed the course and has taught it since 2003 in Aberdeen, and has run similar courses in Banff, Rotterdam, Berlin and Munich. 

Verity worked at HERU for over 20 years and is now an Honorary Professor at the University. Verity's expertise is non-market valuation using contingent valuation and discrete choice experiments. Her research focuses on testing the validity of non-market valuation methods and how study context can influence responses.

Verity has applied these methods to inform a range of policy issues. In doing so she has worked with academics from a number of different fields, the government and the pharmaceutical industry.

Dr Luis Loría Rebolledo

Luis leads the Preference and ValuE (PAVE) research theme in HERU. He joined HERU in 2016 and, since then, has taught on the course in both Aberdeen and Canada. Luis' research focuses on the use of stated preference methods to value non-market goods and services in health and environment. Luis also has an interest in the use of reference-dependent choice models and has taken part in the design of DCEs that apply these in the health and environmental economics field.  

Dr Deborah Marshall

Deborah is a Professor at University of Calgary, who is actively engaged in advancing the methods and applying stated preferences research. She is a member of the Stated Preferences Methods Task Forces of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research to develop good research practice methods for discrete choice experiments in health applications. She has worked in academia, government agencies, and industry in North America and Europe and has published widely in the field.

Dr Gillian Currie

Gillian is a health economist and an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Calgary. She has research experience applying stated preference methods, including discrete choice experiments. A key focus of Gillian’s current research is measuring the preferences of physicians and families for biologic treatment initiation and tapering strategies among children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

The course builds on the experience teaching DCEs, also known as conjoint analysis, to a range of audiences for over 20 years. The course offers an introduction to the theoretical basis for, and development and application of, DCEs.

We provide a thorough and step by step guide to all stages in the design of a DCE survey, including attribute and level selection, experimental design, survey design and implementation, data management, and data analysis and interpretation.

We provide a mix of theory, practical sessions and group work exercises that gives you a hands-on experience of each stage. We draw on real published studies and use state-of-practice software to replicate their analysis and design methods.

This course goes through the whole process of DCE design: from conception to analysis. We will provide insight from our own research experience on aspects that are key to the success of a study, such as choice task construction and survey design.

This is also an opportunity to informally discuss your own projects with HERU researchers or build networks with fellow researchers with an interest in DCEs.

Anyone who is interested in DCEs with an application in health. No knowledge of DCE is assumed, but participants may benefit more if they are familiar with statistical analysis, including regression methods.

Previous course participants have included NIHR clinical fellows, PhD students and early career researchers, and researchers in the contract research organisations and the pharmaceutical industry.

“Thank you so much. The course was fantastic. The presenters’ enthusiasm for the topic and willingness to discuss each attendee’s study/data made attending even more valuable.”

“Thank you to all of the instructors and organizers for an incredibly well-run and very useful course! I will definitely be recommending this course to any colleagues interested in using DCEs in the future.”