Health economics education in undergraduate medical degrees: an assessment of curricula content and student knowledge.

OBJECTIVE: To define the structure and content of health economics teaching in undergraduate medical degrees in the UK, and identify and quantify differences in student knowledge, with a view to informing the health economics curricula.
METHODS: Semi-structured interviews with senior teaching staff in three Medical Schools, a review of course documentation, and an online survey to assess student knowledge. The survey was scored and mean scores were compared across medical schools, year of study, and teaching components, including the professional background of the teachers.
RESULTS: There was considerable diversity across the medical schools in terms of the content of the health economics education, and in the way that the learning was structured and delivered. Student knowledge was found to vary across medical schools; the school with the most intensive health economics curricula was found to perform marginally better. Students who were taught by health economists scored higher than those who were taught by other professions.
CONCLUSION: The teaching and learning environment and level of student knowledge of health economics was found to differ considerably across medical schools. The delivery of health economics teaching by specialised health economists would appear to be one possible strategy to improve student knowledge.