Interventions aimed at improving health often prevent or postpone chronic diseases and thereby influence the consumption of medical and non-medical goods and services in the long run (e.g. if people live longer because they quit smoking, they live longer and make use of health care for a longer period of time). On the other hand, by improving health people may also become more productive (e.g. less absence from work, longer working lives by postponing retirement). In order to make informed decisions about the adoption of new technologies in health care, it is important to include such long term consequences in an economic evaluation.

The aim of this project is to improve estimates of the long run impact of health care technologies on consumption (consumption of health care, informal care and non-medical goods/services) and productivity for various countries. Ultimately, the availability of such estimates will facilitate smarter choices for better health. In order to estimate the relationship between health status, productivity and the consumption of goods and services large administrative datasets will be linked to health surveys and surveys on household consumption. The project combines state of the art statistical methods with economic theory. International cooperation in order to get better estimates of costs/benefits for various countries is foreseen.

The successful applicant for this position is expected to have a master degree in (health) economics, applied econometrics or applied statistics. Applicants must have excellent communication and writing skills in English, and have a strong motivation for doing empirical research in the field of health economics. At least a basic command of Dutch is desired. Computer skills should include R, Stata or similar statistical software. Applicants must have good social skills to be able to collaborate successfully with academics in Europe and beyond. 

We offer a full-time position as PhD student at Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) for a period of 1.5 years, with the intention of extending to a 4-year position if the candidate fulfils expectations. Remuneration will be in accordance with the PhD scale set by the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU). Fulltime work will pay € 2.222.- before taxes in the first year, going up to € 2.840.- in the fourth year. EUR offers a set end-of-year bonus of 8.3% and there are generous opportunities for additional education. A minimal teaching requirement (about 0.1 FTE) is required.

The Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM) of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is leading in the Netherlands with its educational and research activities targeted at policy and management issues in health care. The ESHPM offers a bachelor programme, two master programmes and post-academic educational programmes and courses. At ESHPM, research and educational activities are closely intertwined. Knowledge and experiences of various scientific disciplines such as economics, law, social-medical sciences, organisational science and public administration are brought together and applied to the health care sector. This multidisciplinary approach to education and research is unique. ESHPM is located in the Bayle Building (J) at campus Woudestein of Erasmus University Rotterdam and has strong ties to Erasmus MC. Currently, approximately 950 students are engaged in one of our programmes and 150 people are employed at ESHPM. Internationalisation is highly valued at ESHPM. The number of students, teachers and researchers from abroad has risen significantly over the past years and have enriched our programmes.

A research position is offered within the section Health Economics. This section is distinguished by independent and excellent research and teaching in health economics.