Health Technology Assessment

HTA — wide-ranging evidence to inform health care decision-making

HTA identifies and summarises research evidence to support health care decision-making — a multi-disciplinary process analysing the safety, effectiveness, costs, and ethical, organisational and legal implications of health care technologies, as well as patient and citizen aspects.

Illustration: patient connected to monitoring and data
We have worked with
Kela / Social Insurance InstitutionCOHERE FinlandFinnish hospitalsEUnetHTA
What we do

We typically undertake HTA reviews and systematic literature reviews.

We respond to the needs of each client, using state-of-the-art methods, ensuring the right scope and content for each assessment.

Σ

HTA

A wide range of HTA reviews — e.g. for the Finnish Social Insurance Institution and COHERE Finland, as well as for private companies.

Hospital-based HTA

Supporting the uptake of HTA in acquisition and investment decisions, including a bespoke procurement proposal form developed with Finnish hospitals.

Consultancy and reports

Advice, help and reports for the public and private sectors — market access, Finnish treatment practices and the Finnish HTA landscape.

EUnetHTA & methodology

Participation in developing the HTA Core Model, a common framework and tool for the shared preparation of HTAs.

More about what we do →

About us

A social enterprise.

Summaryx aims to produce information which benefits society, and to offer meaningful and rewarding work for assessment professionals.

Our approach is both academic and pragmatic: collection of research data, information synthesis and critical evaluation are performed by applying robust methods, with the level of detail being determined on a case-by-case basis.

Have a decision that needs evidence?

Get in touch and the team will be glad to discuss new work.

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What we do

What we do

We typically undertake HTA reviews and systematic literature reviews, often including cost-effectiveness or budget-impact analyses. We respond to the needs of each client, using state-of-the-art methods, ensuring the right scope and content for each assessment.

Σ

HTA

We have completed a wide range of HTA reviews, e.g., for the Finnish Social Insurance Institution, Council for Choices in Health Care in Finland (COHERE Finland), as well as for private companies.

Hospital-based HTA (HB-HTA)

We have been involved in supporting the uptake of HTA as part of planning acquisitions and investment decisions. In collaboration with a number of Finnish hospitals we have developed a bespoke procurement proposal form (in Finnish, available in English on request).

We have also created a simplified web-based Budget Impact Analysis (BIA) tool (currently in Finnish, available in English on request), free for non-commercial use. In more complex procurement decisions, the AdHopHTA project's Mini-HTA form, version 2.0, can be used.

Consultancy and reports

We have provided advice, help and reports for both the public and private sectors, on topics such as market access, Finnish treatment practices and the Finnish HTA landscape.

EUnetHTA & HTA-methodological development

We have participated in the development of the HTA Core Model, a common framework and tool for shared preparation of HTAs.

Discuss a project

Who we are

Who we are

We are a multi-disciplinary team with the expertise to analyse safety and effectiveness of technologies, their costs, ethical, organisational and legal implications, as well as patient and citizen aspects.

PA

Pasi Aronen

Health economics

Over fifteen years of experience in health economics, health technology assessment and outcomes research. His main focus has been conducting, or advising on, statistical analyses and modelling in economic evaluations; he is also interested in decision analysis and data science.

NB

Neill Booth

Economic evaluation

A health services researcher specialised in economic evaluation related to HTA for the last 20 years. Interests include the critical appraisal and interpretation of health-economic evaluations. Memberships: HTAi, ISPOR, HESG and the Finnish Society for Health Economics.

JI

Jaana Isojärvi

Information specialist

15 years designing comprehensive, high-quality literature searches for systematic reviews, HTAs and economic evaluations. She helps keep Summarized Research in Information Retrieval for HTA (SuRe Info) up to date and is an experienced trainer.

MM

Marjukka Mäkelä

Professor, general practice

More than 20 years undertaking and supervising HTAs, evidence-based guidelines and systematic reviews. Former chair of both INAHTA and GIN, HTAi board member, and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care.

MS

Maija Saijonkari

Systematic reviews

Over fifteen years in HTAs, systematic reviews, medical writing and information dissemination. Especially interested in methodology relating to systematic reviews and in HTAs of diagnostic methods.

Iris Pasternack, MD (1962–2020), founded Summaryx in 2013.

Publications

Publications

Peer-reviewed and commissioned work from 2013 onward. Titles link to the original source.

2024
Hovi SL, Aronen P, Saijonkari M, Joutsa J, Booth N, Hagan K, Isojärvi J, Ruotsalainen R, Mäkelä M. Transkraniaalinen sarjamagneettistimulaatio (rTMS) ja aivojen tasavirtastimulaatio (tDCS) neuropaattisen kivun hoidossa: järjestelmällinen katsaus. Helsinki: Summaryx Oy; 2024.
2023
Booth N, Kurkela O, Rutanen J. Epävarmalla tiedolla eteenpäin! Suomen Lääkärilehti 2023;78(45-46):1818.
Booth N. Taloudellisen arvioinnin historia, nykyhetki ja tulevaisuus. Sosiaalilääketieteellinen aikakauslehti 2023;60(3).
2021
Booth N, Saijonkari M, Lassila L, Isojärvi J, Hovi SL, Aronen P, Finnilä J, Mäkelä M. Hampaan restaurointi suun ulkopuolella valmistetuilla paikoilla tai kruunuilla: järjestelmällinen katsaus. Helsinki: Summaryx Oy; 2021.
Koivu AM, Hunter PJ, Näsänen-Gilmore P, Muthiani Y, Isojärvi J, Pörtfors P, Ashorn U, Ashorn P. Modular Literature Review: A Novel Systematic Search and Review Method to Support Priority Setting in Health Policy and Practice. BMC Med Res Methodol 2021 Nov 27;21(1):268.
2020
Saijonkari M, Booth N, Österman H, Isojärvi J, Finnilä J, Mäkelä M. Lannerangan luudutuskirurgia ja sen jälkeinen kuntoutus: järjestelmällinen katsaus sekä tulosten kriittinen analyysi. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2020.
Saijonkari M, Booth N, Isojärvi J, Finnilä J, Mäkelä M. Kasvosuojukset COVID-19-tartunnalta suojautumisessa ja infektioepidemian hallinnassa: järjestelmällinen katsaus ja näytön arviointi. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2020. (Report is Appendix 1 in “Selvitys väestön kasvosuojusten käytöstä COVID-19-epidemian leviämisen ehkäisyssä”.)
Saijonkari M, Booth N, Österman H, Isojärvi J, Finnilä J, Mäkelä M. Spinaalistenoosin (lannerangan ahtauman) kirurginen hoito ja sen jälkeinen kuntoutus: järjestelmällinen katsaus sekä tulosten kriittinen analyysi. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2020.
Saijonkari M, Finnilä J, Booth N, Isojärvi J, Mäkelä M. Kognitiivinen adaptaatio asumisen tukea tarvitsevan skitsofreniapotilaan kuntoutuksena: järjestelmällinen katsaus. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2020.
2019
Booth N. On value frameworks and opportunity costs in health technology assessment. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2019;35(5):367-372.
Pasternack I, Söderström I, Saijonkari M, Mäkelä M. Lääketieteelliset menetelmät sukupuolivariaatioihin liittyvän dysforian hoidossa. Systemaattinen katsaus. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2019.
2018
Saijonkari M, Booth N, Isojärvi J, Aronen P, Mäkelä M. Virtuaalitodellisuuden vaikuttavuus kivun hoidossa: järjestelmällinen katsaus. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2018.
Pasternack I, Isojärvi J, Mäkelä M. Sairaanhoitajien lääkkeenmääräämisoikeuden vaikutuksia teollisuusmaiden perusterveydenhuollossa. Helsinki: Summaryx Ltd.; 2018.
Pasternack I, Isojärvi J, Mäkelä M. Hoitajaresepti vaikuttaa turvalliselta. Suomen Lääkärilehti 2018;74(44):2580-2581.
Pasternack I, Fogelholm C, Koskinen E. Selkäydinvammapotilaiden kuntoutuksen vaikuttavuus. Helsinki: Kela; 2018. Sosiaali- ja terveysturvan tutkimuksia 151.
2017
Booth N, Aronen P, Mäkelä M. Selvitys kustannusvaikuttavuuden käyttämisestä yhtenä terveydenhuollon palveluvalikoiman määrittelykriteerinä [Report on using cost-effectiveness as one of the criteria for defining health-care service choices]. Helsinki: Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö; 2017. (STM:n raportteja ja muistioita 2017:30.)
Saijonkari M, Mäkelä M, Booth N. Katsaus terveydenhuollon priorisointiin eri maissa. Helsinki: Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö; 2017. (STM:n raportteja ja muistioita 2017:18.)
Pasternack I, Remahl A, Ahovuo-Saloranta A, Isojärvi J, Mäkinen E. Krooninen väsymysoireyhtymä. Etiologia, diagnostiikka, hoito sekä kuntoutusinterventiot. Helsinki: Kela; 2017. Sosiaali- ja terveysturvan raportteja 3.
2016
Pasternack I. Kilpirauhasen syöpää ylidiagnosoidaan. BestPractice. 25.7.2016.
Pasternack I, Krzysztof L. Networks in hospital-based HTA. In: Sampietro-Colom L, Martin J, editors. Hospital-based Health Technology Assessment: the next frontier for health technology assessment. Vienna: Springer; 2016.
Roine R, Pasternack I. HTA activities in Finnish hospitals. In: Sampietro-Colom L, Martin J, editors. Hospital-based health technology assessment: the next frontier for health technology assessment. Vienna: Springer; 2016.
2015
Eskelinen S, Pasternack I. Laboratoriokokeiden perusteeksi vaikuttavuus. Suomen Lääkärilehti 2015;70(42):2739.
Pasternack I, Autti-Rämö I, Hinkka K, Pappila J. Miten tunnistaa varhaiskuntoutuksen tarve työelämässä? Kirjallisuuskatsaus työkyvyn heikkenemisen ennusmerkeistä ja varhaisen tunnistamisen työkaluista. Helsinki: Kela; 2015. Sosiaali- ja terveysturvan selosteita 91.
Pasternack I, Halmesmäki E, Roine R. Facilitators and barriers of using HTA in Finnish hospitals. HTAi Annual Meeting 2015, Oslo 16.6.2015.
Sampietro-Colom L, Lach K, Cicchetti A, Kidholm K, Pasternack I, Fure B, et al. The AdHopHTA handbook: a handbook of hospital based Health Technology Assessment (HB-HTA). Public deliverable; The AdHopHTA Project (FP7/2007-13 grant agreement nr 305018); 2015.
Sampietro-Colom L, Lach K, Pasternack I, Wasserfallen JB, Cicchetti A, Marchetti M, et al. Guiding principles for good practices in hospital-based health technology assessment units. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2015;31(6):457-65.
2014
Halmesmäki E, Pasternack I, Roine R. Collaboration between hospitals and HTA agencies. HTAi Annual Meeting 2014, 16-18 June 2014, Washington DC.
Kleijnen S, Pasternack I, Rannanheimo P, Vuola JM, Van de Casteele M, Bucsics A, et al. Piloting international production of rapid relative effectiveness assessments of pharmaceuticals. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2014;30(5):521-529.
Kleijnen S, Pasternack I, Van de Casteele M, Rossi B, Cangini A, Dibidino R, et al. Standardized reporting for rapid relative effectiveness assessments of pharmaceuticals. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2014;30(5):488-496.
Pasternack I, Eskelinen S. Liika on liikaa - lääketieteessäkin. Suomen Lääkärilehti 2014;69(48):3242-3243.
Pasternack I. Juridiikka täydentää terveydenhuollon menetelmien arviointia. IMPAKTI-uutiskirje 4/2014.
Pasternack I, Halmesmäki E, Roine R. Laitteita hankitaan sairaaloihin sattumanvaraisesti. Helsingin Sanomat 14.6.2014.
Pasternack I, de Groot I, Kleijnen S, Polman P. Comparing the HTA Core Model with a national HTA report. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2014;30(5):530-535.
2013
Huić M, Nachtnebel A, Zechmeister I, Pasternack I, Wild C. Collaboration in health technology assessment (EUnetHTA Joint Action, 2010-2012): Four case studies. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2013;29(3):323-330.
Summaryx in the media

Summaryx in the media

Below is a collection of some of the mentions in Finnish newspapers, magazines or journals, as well as programmes or videos (mainly in the Finnish media) in which Summaryx experts have appeared.

Hoitajareseptin hyödyt osoittamatta. Suomen Lääkärilehti 44/2018
Robotin avustama selkäydinvamman kuntoutus tehoaa. Suomen Lääkärilehti 43/2018
Kuka saa kalliita lääkkeitä? A-studio 4.10.2017
Rajanvetäjät tarttuivat kalliisiin lääkkeisiin: mikä hoito kuuluu Suomen terveydenhuoltoon ja mikä ei? Suomen Lääkärilehti 45/2017
Väsymysoireyhtymä rasittaa jopa kymmeniätuhansia, mutta kaikki lääkärit eivät usko sen olemassaoloon. Helsingin Sanomat 7.10.2017
Masennukseksi diagnosoidut oireet voivatkin johtua kroonisesta väsymysoireyhtymästä. Helsingin Sanomat 10.7.2017
Epäselvä krooninen väsymysoireyhtymä yleistyy – jopa yksi sadasta sairastaa. Iltalehti 27.6.2017
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Company
Summaryx Oy
Contact
Maija Saijonkari
Registered social enterprise