EcoEchoes

This episode’s guest is Pieter van Baal, Professor of Public Health Economics at the Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management and head of the Health Economics department. The conversation explores pharmaceutical pricing, patents, and innovation incentives, discussing why healthcare systems negotiate medicine prices and whether the current model for developing innovative medicines is functioning effectively. Pieter reflects on the role of governments, pharmaceutical companies, and public funding in medical innovation, while also considering alternative systems that could make medicines more accessible and affordable. The episode additionally touches on academic leadership, research culture, and advice for PhD students navigating academia.
 
Guest: Pieter van Baal, Professor of Public Health Economics, Erasmus School of Health Policy & ManagementHost: Fanny Tallgren, Andrea De Palma
Timestamps:
(00:45) Pieter’s background and journey into health economics(09:30) The Dutch advisory committee and pharmaceutical price negotiations(19:50) Is the current pharmaceutical innovation system working?(30:30) Alternative models for patents, innovation, and public funding(44:30) Innovation in China, the US, and Europe(46:45) Leadership, department culture, and advice for PhD students

This episode’s guest is Frédérique Franken, a PhD candidate at the Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM). She discusses her research on the environmental sustainability of healthcare, focusing on the role of insurer–provider contract negotiations in driving greener practices. The conversation explores how healthcare systems contribute to climate change, the Dutch policy context (including the Green Deal Sustainable Healthcare), and the challenges of translating sustainability goals into concrete actions. Frédérique also reflects on her interdisciplinary path from medicine to health economics and the practical realities of conducting mixed-methods research.
Guest: Frédérique Franken, PhD Candidate, Erasmus School of Health Policy & ManagementHost: Prithviraj Basu Mallik, Andrea De Palma
Timestamps:
(00:50) Background and path from medicine to health economics(06:20) What sustainability in healthcare means and why it matters(13:20) Policy context: Green Deal and integrated care agreement(18:10) Research design: documents and interviews(25:00) Key findings on sustainability in contract negotiations(27:00) Challenges: costs, incentives, and implementation

This episode’s guest is Elisa de Weerd, a PhD candidate in Health Economics at the Erasmus School of Economics and incoming postdoctoral researcher at Radboud University. She discusses her research on employment and earnings dynamics before and after transgender transitioning using Dutch administrative data. The conversation explores how large-scale administrative datasets can help study labor market inequalities faced by transgender individuals, the methodological challenges of identifying transitioning events in the data, and the implications for understanding economic outcomes and wellbeing. Elisa also reflects on how the project developed during her PhD and on future research directions.
Guest: Elisa de Weerd, PhD Candidate, Erasmus School of EconomicsHost: Fanny Tallgren, Andrea De Palma
Timestamps:
(00:20) Elisa’s background and research interests(05:10) Motivation for studying transgender transitioning and economic outcomes(10:30) Data and research design using Dutch administrative records(22:00) Main findings on employment and earnings around transition(31:00) Interpretation, limitations, and policy relevance(38:30) Current projects and advice for PhD students

This episode features Johannes Cordier, a visiting PhD student from the University of St. Gallen at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Johannes discusses two papers using Swiss hospital administrative data. The first examines how machine learning methods can identify under-reported sepsis cases, shedding light on how coding practices and reimbursement incentives affect data quality. The second studies how patient placement across hospital wards influences mortality, combining causal machine learning with decision-theoretic approaches to account for capacity constraints.
The episode concludes with reflections on research visits, academic conferences, and practical advice for PhD students navigating research careers and industry pathways.
Guest: Johannes Cordier, Visiting PhD Student (University of St. Gallen)
Hosts: Fanny Tallgren, Prithviraj Basu Mallik
Timestamps:(01:50) Background and research focus(03:40) Sepsis under-reporting and admin data(11:35) Machine learning methods(17:40) Patient placement and mortality(31:20) Research visits and PhD career advice

This episode’s guest is Sanna Azzouz, PhD candidate in Health Technology Assessment at Erasmus University Rotterdam. She discusses her paper "Cost-effectiveness analysis of image-guided ablation versus conventional ablation in patients with recurrent ventricular tachycardia in France: results from the inEurHeart trial".
The conversation covers how ventricular tachycardia develops after myocardial infarction, the clinical and economic trade-offs between different treatment options, and how AI-based imaging can reduce procedure time and costs without compromising patient outcomes. The episode also reflects on the challenges of measuring quality of life in severe cardiac conditions and translating short-term trial results into long-term health economic insights.
In the final part, Sanna shares her experience working at the intersection of healthcare, economics, and AI, and offers personal advice for PhD students on growth, balance, and enjoying the research journey.
Guest: Sanna Azzouz, PhD Candidate, Erasmus University RotterdamHosts: Karen Trujillo, Andrea De Palma
Timestamps:(00:55) Sanna’s background and research focus(06:55) Ventricular tachycardia and treatment pathways(12:54) Image-guided vs conventional ablation and AI(15:45) The InHeart trial and key findings(23:00) Quality of life, uncertainty, and long-term outcomes(38:53) Advice for PhD students and early-career researchers

In this episode, Stefan Lipman, Assistant Professor at Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (Erasmus University Rotterdam), discusses with us how financial incentives can be used to promote healthy behaviour. The conversation covers incentive design (carrots vs. sticks), ethical and equity considerations, funding and cost-effectiveness, the role of structural determinants of health, and the sustainability of behaviour change. In the final part, he shares advice for PhD students and early-career researchers on teaching, presenting, and transitioning to a PhD in Health Economics coming from a different background.
Guest: Stefan Lipman, Assistant Professor, Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
Hosts: Karen Trujillo, Andrea de Palma
 
(03:35) Stefan's research background and motivation
(06:08) Why to focus on financial incentives for healthy behaviour?
(09:52) Carrots and sticks: reward-based and loss-based designs
(14:34) Targeting and equity
(24:25) Combining financial incentives
(35:00) Structural influences on healthy behaviour
(59:57) Transitioning into a PhD in health economics coming from a different background

In this episode, we have a casual chat about Prithvi’s experience attending and presenting at the International Long-Term Care Policy Network (ILPN) 2024 Conference in Bilbao. We talk about what the conference was like, from the city to the general vibe, and what it’s like to present research to a mixed audience. More broadly, we chat about navigating big conferences solo, tips for meeting people and starting conversations, and general observations about conference culture. 
 
Hosts: Prithviraj Basu Mallik & Fanny Tallgren
If you would like to learn more about this conference, click here to go to the ILPN website. 
 

In this episode of EcoEchoes, we speak with Professor Job van Exel, a health economist, director of research at ESHPM, and the original founder of this podcast. We discuss the challenges in defining and measuring informal caregiving, especially for incorporating it into economic evaluations and then to further down the line inform policy. For example, we talk about the distinctions between objective and subjective burden, and the different assumptions and potential biases in different valuation approaches (proxy good, opportunity cost, contingent valuation, perseverance time). In the final part of the episode, Job reflects on his career trajectory, the role of luck and curiosity, and gives advice for early-stage researchers on career planning and embracing opportunities.
 
Guest: Job van Exel, Professor of Health Economics at Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM), Erasmus University RotterdamHost: Fanny Tallgren, Andrea De Palma
 
If you are interested in reading more about this topic, then this paper summarizes work done at ESHPM in terms of measuring and valuing the impact of patient interventions on informal carers. In this paper, you can learn more about the perseverance time measure, and in this paper, how to use a discrete choice experiment to determine the value of an hour of time caregiving. This paper describes how to include broader effects of caregiving in an economic evaluation of a patient intervention using a measure that is compatible with how effects are measured in patients (and the healthcare perspective). This paper shows how to estimate caregiver time using information that is typically available in clinical trials: the EQ-5D scores of patients and their gender. 

This episode’s guest is Danae Arroyos-Calvera, Associate Professor in Behavioural and Experimental Economics at the University of Birmingham. She discusses her research on cooperation, moral wiggle room, and plausible deniability in public goods games. The conversation explores the challenge of translating lab findings to policy, the importance of publishing null results, and the balance between image, incentives, and fairness in human behaviour.In the final part, Danae shares advice for early-career researchers on trusting the process, asking for what you need, and handling tough seminar questions with confidence.
Guest: Danae Arroyos-Calvera, Associate Professor, University of BirminghamHost: Fanny Tallgren, Andrea De Palma
Timestamps:(00:20) Danae’s research background in behavioural economics(07:25) The “Limits of Moral Wiggle Room” experiment(23:00) Results and implications(27:00) From lab to policy and the value of null results(42:00) Advice for PhD students and young researchers

In this episode, Yubraj Acharya discusses his paper ‘Reducing Non-Prescription Antibiotics Use through Community Education in Low-Income Countries’. He sheds light on the growing issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and shares about the intervention he conducted in Nepal, aimed at reducing non-prescribed antibiotic use among parents of children.
Guest: Yubraj Acharya, Associate Professor of Health Policy and Administration and Demography at Pennsylvania State University, The United States.
Hosts: Fanny Tallgren, Karen Trujillo Jara
Timestamps:
0:36 Meet our guest: Yubraj Acharya
06:00 Drivers of antibiotics use in community contexts
11:40 Series of work conducted on Antimicrobial Resistance
12:30 Components of the study intervention in Nepal
21:50 Findings 
33:10 Considerations for scaling up a similar study in other settings
37:00 Experience of living in Rotterdam