Our group applies epidemiologic and psychometric methods to produce new knowledge on the needs for healthcare and the outcomes of health services utilization. Our research interest focuses on the burden of common mental disorders and cancer. We use modern methods of measurement of health-related quality of life, well-being, function and disability. We also develop a number of educational, mentoring and knowledge transfer activities. Our group is composed by 15-20 multidisciplinary professionals and is a member of the CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (Instituto de Salud Carlos III) and it is recognized as a Consolidated Research Group by Generalitat de Catalunya.
RESEARCH LINES
- Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQL) Measurement. Development and evaluation of HRQL instruments for health services, public health and clinical research. We have adapted and validated more than 40 HRQL instruments, developing a standard guide for evaluating the quality of these instruments (EMPRO), and we have developed a "Method and system for evaluating an individual's Health-Related Quality of Life" (patent application No. P200600211). We have developed and host the technology platform BiblioPRO, a virtual library of HRQL questionnaires in Spanish. In addition, we collaborate with major research initiatives: PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) initiative funded by the USA NIH; PROMIS-HealthMeasures; the Committee of Standards and Good Scientific Practices from the International Society for Quality of Life Research (ISOQOL), and ICHOM (International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement), among others. We are partners in several EU-funded projects: "Establishing international standards in the analysis of patient reported outcomes and health-related quality of life data in cancer clinical trials" (SISAQOL); International Quality of Life Outcomes Database (IQOD), Measuring Health and Disability in Europe (MHADIE) and the KIDSCREEN project.
- Estimation of the burden of mental disease. Our research focuses on the frequency, risk factors, disabilities, and economic and social costs related to the most common mental disorders and suicide. We are members of the World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys Consortium a consortium of 30+ countries, coordinated by Harvard University and WHO to promote psychiatric epidemiology studies worldwide in the general population and the university students. Our group leads the European participating countries and the area of assessment of the burden of mental health problems. WMH Consortium's contributions are relevant to improve the knowledge on health care needs and are a more solid basis for decision-making and for developing and evaluating health policies. In addition, we collaborate with EU, national, regional and local mental health stakeholders to guide planning and provision of more efficient and equitable mental health services.
- Evaluation of health services effectiveness and efficiency. We design studies and apply Patient Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs) and other Clinical Outcome Assessments (COA) for evaluating the efficacy, effectiveness and efficiency of medical procedures and health programs. Prostate cancer, common mental disorders, and asthma are our main research focus. The Asthma Research in Children and Adolescents (ARCA project), a multicenter observational prospective study, was designed to provide evidence about the evolution of young patients with persistent asthma. The ARCA app was designed for collecting PROs regularly in this project. We collaborate with local, regional and national governments since our research is oriented to findings are relevant for clinicians' and regulators' decision-making. The group is currently part of the TrueNTH Global Registry - Prostate Cancer Outcomes , a Movember Foundation international initiative.
