Care pathway analysis to identify the value proposition
The NIHR Newcastle MIC has expertise in care pathway analysis. We use this technique to help developers identify and assess the value proposition of their new diagnostic.
What is the value proposition of the test?
The value proposition is a claim about the importance, worth or usefulness of a test. For example, a test could have the potential to be, more accurate, less invasive or reduce time to diagnosis.
What is a care pathway?
A care pathway outlines the sequence of interactions a patient experiences as they navigate through a healthcare system with the symptoms of a particular medical condition. Mapping out the care pathway captures the points of contact, actions, decisions, and potential outcomes associated with the patient’s care. This helps to identify unmet clinical needs and scenarios where a new test could be integrated into the pathway to improve patient care.
Why is this work important?
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) provides national guidance and advice to improve health and social care. They recommend diagnostics developers plan their market access strategy to:
- Understand the changing healthcare landscape
- Identify the most appropriate route to NHS access
- Explore their value proposition with system stakeholders
When should care pathway analysis be done?
For this type of analysis we require the developers to have produced a prototype of the test and data to demonstrate the performance of test in the laboratory.
What we do
We map out the current care pathway and assess the potential roles for a new test by:
- Reviewing literature, national and local guidelines and audit data
- Devising, delivering and analysing surveys
- Formulating, conducting and evaluating detailed interviews
- Organising, facilitating and examining focus group discussions
We will provide a report summarising our findings. We will also produce a flow chart of the current care pathway and the modified pathway with the developer’s diagnostic integrated in the most optimal place.
You can read more about the NICE technology appraisal process by following this link.
Look at the impact posts below for examples of our care pathway analysis work.
