Sedimentation of health technology assessment in hospitals: a scoping review

The aim of this study was to analyze the level of sedimentation of hospital-based health technology assessment (HTA) in diverse contexts. A scoping review was conducted according to the methodology of the Joanna Briggs Institute, whose data analysis model consisted of the combination of Donabedian's structure, process, and outcome categories and the dimensions of the project Adopting Hospital Based Health Technology Assessment in European Union (AdHopHTA). We identified 270 studies, and after removing duplicates and reading full texts, 36 references met the eligibility criteria. Thirty-six hospitals were identified, of which there were 24 large-scale hospitals with extra bed capacity. Twenty-three hospitals were affiliated with universities. Canada stood out with five university hospitals, four of which with public funding. Half of the identified hospitals had hospital-based HTA units (18/36). Hospitals with sedimented levels of HTA corresponded to 75% of the sample (27/36), and the remainder had partially sedimented HTA, or 25% of the hospitals in the review (9/36). There were no hospitals with incipient sedimentation. Measuring the level of HTA sedimentation in the hospitals contributed to understanding how their participation has occurred in the field of hospital-based HTA. This study revealed the importance of identifying factors such as sustainability, growth, and evolution of hospital-based HTA in countries with and without a tradition in this field.