EUPATI HTA4Patients project kicks off – enhancing patients’ knowledge of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) across Europe

Published 1 March 2023

The European Patients Academy on Therapeutic Innovation (EUPATIis to lead a 3-year training project entitled ‘HTA4Patients from 01 March 2023.   

The European Union’s new framework for Health Technology Assessment (HTA) regulation (EU 2021/2282represents a unique opportunity to strengthen the involvement of patient communities in HTA processes. Strong and informed input from patients and patient representation is necessary to support this new framework and efficient HTA. HTA4Patients will enhance the education, training and information that EUPATI already provides on HTA via its Open Classroom and Toolbox empowering patients and patient organisations to play a vital role in the implementation of the new framework.   

What is HTA? 

According to the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment (INAHTA), Health Technology Assessment (HTA) is a multidisciplinary process that uses explicit methods to determine the value of a health technology at different points in its lifecycle. The purpose is to inform decision-making in order to promote an equitable, efficient and high-quality health system. 

What are the objectives of the project? 

Specifically, the project will focus on the following areas; 

  1. Designing an e-learning training course for patients on HTA and the specific requirements for the new regulation  
  2. Updating EUPATI’s existing patient training content on HTA aligning with the new regulation 
  3. Developing interactive online training sessions (in 5 languages) preparing participants to take part in joint clinical assessments and joint scientific consultations with national HTA bodies 
  4. Implementing sustainability measures to ensure continuity of the project outputs in the future 

‘At EUPATI we strive to provide accessible, innovative and inclusive education to ensure patients have the right knowledge and skills to effectively engage and partner with other involved stakeholders in medicines R&D. This project builds on our continued commitment to patient education with the spotlight on HTA’ – Maria Dutarte EUPATI Executive Director.

The EUPATI HTA4Patients project hopes to build a solid foundation of knowledge, skills and competencies for increased patient engagement in HTA across Europe.   

Additional Information 

About the EU framework for HTA regulation (EU 2021/2282) 

The regulation on Health Technology Assessment (HTAR) contributes to improving the availability for EU patients of innovative technologies in the area of health such as medicines and certain medical devices. New regulations (EU2021/2282) have been passed which will come into effect in January 2025, establishing a new permanent framework focused on patients to address unmet medical needs and facilitate wider availability of life saving innovative health technologies. This framework for joint action will cover joint scientific consultations, the identification of emerging health technologies, voluntary cooperation and joint clinical assessments. More information here.   

About EUPATI 

The European Patients Academy on Therapeutic Innovation (EUPATI) is a public-private and multi-stakeholder partnership bringing together patient organisations, academia and pharmaceutical industry.EUPATI wasdeveloped and implemented as a flagship project of the Innovative Medicines Initiative in 2012 and is today a non-profit Foundation. To date EUPATI has trained over 250 patient experts (EUPATI Fellows), 800 online learners via the EUPATI Open Classroom and 750 professionals working in patient engagement. The EUPATI Toolbox is an independent, user-friendly information portal on medicines R&D available in 14 languages reaching over 6.5 million users. 24 EUPATI National Platforms (ENPs) are spread across Europe and in Japan allowing local and national level patient engagement activities.  More information on EUPATI here.   

 


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