Research News

About the
Institute of Health Economics (IHE),
University of Dhaka

Mission
To establish an academic entity within the University of Dhaka for teaching and training in order to
develop, strengthen and build up the capacity of the health sector professionals, academicians, and health
service managers, and for organizing and conducting practical policy-oriented research for the Sector.

Objectives
To provide academic degrees in Health Economics.
To train health sector personnel on Health Economics, Health Policy, Health Care Management,
and Health Systems. To identify policy-relevant health economics/ systems research and projects.
To assist the Government of Bangladesh in review and formulation of policies, analysis of the
health systems, and advice government and semi-government organizations on health sector
issues. To develop links with national and international agencies and organizations engaged in the
development of and research for health and population sector, particularly those addressing health
economics, health systems, health care management, and policy issues in order to strengthen the
Institute’s capacity for research and training in Health Economics.
To undertake research and studies on health economic issues sponsored by public and private
organizations independently or in collaboration with national or international organizations.
Activities of the Institute
To offer academic degrees (BSS, MSS, EMHE, MPhil, and PhD)
To conduct research work (both academic and policy)
To provide consulting service to the health sector
To conduct short courses/ training on health economics issues

Experience of the Institute
Institute of Health Economics has more than 22 years of experience in conducting research on health
economics, economic evaluation, health system, public health, health care financing, hospital management,
health insurance, family planning, maternal and child heal, adolescent and reproductive health, food and
nutrition, health seeking behavior, pharmacoeconomics and other relevant fields.

About IHE’s Research
IHE’s research covers all the issues of health economics related to the six building blocks of the health
systems: service delivery; health workforce; health information systems; access to essential medicines;
health care financing; health sector leadership and governance. Our research has a focus on health
insurance and innovative financing, impact evaluation of interventions in heath sector, economic analysis
of disease burdens and health concerns, health technology and efficiency assessment of health systems.
Other research areas include nutrition, family planning, social safety net, food safety, pharmacoeconomics
and environmental health including medical waste management.

Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Institute of Health Economics has an Institutional Review Board (IRB) registered with the Federalwide
Assurance (FWA) for the Protection of Human Subjects. It is an authorized panel of nine members
to provide ethical approval for conducting research. The IRB will review activities involving human
subjects in a research proposal to check if the methodology protects the rights and welfare of human
subjects according to the standards approved by the FWA. The purpose of the IRB is to assure that
appropriate steps are taken to maintain the ethical norms acceptable to humans participating as subjects
in a research study.