Barriers and facilitators for conducting and implementing health technology assessment in Jordan: researchers and decision-makers’ perspectives
Rimal Hamdan Mousa, Samar Melhem, Shiekha S. AlAujan, Saja Almazrou, Emad Almomani, Abeer Al Rabayah, Eman A. Hammad, Rasha M. Arabyat, Ibrahim Alabbadi, Abdallah Y. NaserAbstract
Objectives
Health technology assessment (HTA) is a multidisciplinary approach that evaluates the clinical data and cost-effectiveness of health technologies within broader policy and societal contexts. This study aimed to identify barriers and facilitators to conducting HTA and implementing its findings in Jordan and to determine key technical and context-specific priorities to enhance HTA use.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online, self-administered questionnaire distributed between 1 June and 29 July 2024. Participants were purposively sampled and invited via email. The questionnaire’s face and content validity were assessed by two local experts. Responses from researchers and decision-makers were analyzed descriptively.
Results
A total of fifty-one participants were included. Both groups identified “lack of routinely collected local effectiveness data and national health statistics” and “absence of health state preference values for estimating quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs)” as major barriers to conducting HTA. The top-rated facilitator was “the development of a good-quality national real-world database.” Researchers additionally highlighted “financial incentives for particular interventions” as an important barrier, whereas decision-makers emphasized “the lack of formal willingness-to-pay thresholds” as the primary barrier to HTA implementation. Both groups identified “prioritization of economic evaluations targeting high-burden conditions” as the most important facilitator for implementation.
Conclusions
Significant systemic and methodological barriers hinder HTA conduct and implementation in Jordan – including limited local data, a lack of health state preference values, and the absence of explicit willingness-to-pay thresholds. Strengthening national data infrastructure, establishing clear policy frameworks, and prioritizing economic evaluations are critical for enhancing HTA integration and supporting evidence-informed decision-making.