Microsimulation models on child and adolescent health: a scoping review protocol

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Economics
• Computational Modeling

Background:

• Microsimulation models simulate microagent behavior (children, adolescents) to assess health interventions and policies.
• These models are valuable for decision-making in health policy.
• A comprehensive review and quality evaluation of existing child and adolescent health microsimulation models is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a scoping review of existing microsimulation models focused on child and adolescent health.
• To synthesize and critically appraise the literature on these models.
• To evaluate the quality, strengths, and limitations of current models.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive scoping review methodology will be employed.
• Searches will be conducted across multiple databases (PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, EconLit, Scopus) with updates.
• Additional searches will include snowballing, Google, and specific journal/website searches. Data extraction and quality assessment using the Quality Assessment Reporting for Microsimulation Models checklist will be performed, followed by narrative synthesis.

Main Results:

• Data extraction will cover all retrieved studies on child and adolescent health microsimulation models.
• Quality assessment will identify strengths and limitations of existing models.
• Findings will be synthesized using narrative summaries and tables, categorized by health condition where possible.

Conclusions:

• The review will provide a critical appraisal of the current landscape of child and adolescent health microsimulation models.
• Findings will inform the development of future, higher-quality models.
• Results will guide the creation of a new microsimulation model for child and adolescent health in Sweden.