Generic software to quantify the health impact of policies
DYNAMO-HIA is a tool to quantify the health impact of policies influencing health determinants. The instrument, a dynamic model called DYNAMO-HIA, is generic (adaptable to the health determinants and outcomes relevant for the policy in question), applicable throughout the European Union, and can be downloaded from this website.
The health effects are assessed through their influence on health determinants. With partial micro-simulation based on Markov modelling, morbidity and mortality projections are calculated from simulated risk factor histories. For a more detailed description of the calculations go to Software
Risk factor histories are a crucial driving part of the simulation. They need to be specified for a reference scenario, and for the situation after implementing the policy. The DYNAMO-HIA tool does not require programming skills of the user. The software and user-manual can be downloaded from this website.Software
Default data sets on current risk factors and health outcomes are supplied with the software download. Provided are data on the three risk factors: smoking, alcohol consumption and body mass index (BMI (Body Mass Index. De BMI is een index die de verhouding tussen lengte en gewicht bij een persoon weergeeft. De BMI wordt veel gebruikt om een indicatie te krijgen of er sprake is van overgewicht of ondergewicht.)) and ten health outcomes: ischaemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, cancer of the oral cavity, esophageal cancer, COPD and all cause mortality. The instrument is adaptable and can be extended with other risk factors and health outcomes.
Demonstration
Two example applications are presented in [Lhachimi SK et al, 2012] to illustrate the usability of DYNAMO-HIA:
- The consequences of a policy-induced increase in alcohol consumption. This resembles a prospective HIA.
- The quantification of changes in population health if smoking were to be eradicated. This resembles a burden of disease study.
