The DHE Unit Cost Online Database is provided as a Microsoft Excel® workbook (Excel® 2013). All columns include filters that can be sorted and searched with individual terms. A screenshot (version 4.1, 2022) and description of the columns and entries included is given below.
Click here for the screenshot as pdf.
Description:
- Description of unit cost: short description of the unit cost, in English; additional explanations in German in case of ambiguityUnit of measure: unit (e.g. day, stay, visit, examination) of cost as given in the original study [->Study reference (original study)]; if clear from the description [->Description of unit cost], "unit" is indicated
- Unit cost: as given in the original study
- Range of unit cost: if given in the original study; "not reported" indicates that an upper or lower limit was not reported
- Year of unit cost: as given in the original study; "unclear" and "assumed" indicate that the exact year of unit cost was unclear and an assumption was made if possible based on additional information given in the study (e.g. year of clinical trial)
- Sector of unit cost/cost category: (most detailed) health or social care sector or cost category the unit cost can be attributed to, including inpatient, hospital, outpatient ward, day-clinic, outpatient, social care, long-term care, informal care, indirect costs, other; "assumed"/"unclear" indicates that it is unclear from the original study; private out-of-pocket expenses are listed under "co-payment"
- Regional level of unit cost: lowest regional level of the unit cost; "assumed" indicates that it is unclear from the original study
- Original source(s) of unit cost: source of the unit cost (->"Unit cost") as stated in the original study; "assumed" indicates that it is unclear from the original study; more than one source listed as 1); 2); etc.
- Explanation/limitation of unit cost: additional explanations of the unit cost e.g. in terms of calculation methods and sources of the unit cost as a direct quote from the original study; limitations of the unit cost in terms of reflecting actual costs, transferability to other institutions, regional levels of unit costs etc. as a direct quote from the original study
- Study disease/intervention area: general study disease and/or intervention area as stated in the original study
- Study perspective: perspective of the original study or unit cost as stated in the original study; "assumed" indicates that this information was not explicitly stated in the original study
- Study type: including full economic evaluations (cost-minimization analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, cost-utility analysis), partial economic evaluations (cost description, cost analysis, budget-impact analysis, cost-of-illness study), systematic literature review; "model" indicates that the analysis in the original study was based on a model
- Study reference (original study): full reference of the original study extracted for the DHE Unit Cost Online Database