Title: The relative efficiency of the General Clinical Research Centres - an application of data envelopment analysis to medical research infrastructure

Authors: Kingsley E. Haynes, G. Stephane Philogene, Mustafa Dinc

Addresses: The School of Public Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444, USA. The School of Public Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444, USA. The School of Public Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444, USA

Abstract: In this paper, we have investigated the relative efficiency of 74 General Clinical Research Centres (GCRC) by using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). These GCRCs are sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a biomedical research institution within the US Department of Health and Human Services. Located throughout various cities across the USA, the GCRCs provide a research infrastructure for clinical investigators who receive their primary research support from other peer-reviewed sources inside NIH as well as from other federal agencies, and the private sector. First, we assessed the relative efficiency of the GCRCs using a DEA model. Second, we performed a regression analysis that incorporated regional and environmental variables not controlled in the DEA, which could influence the efficiency scores of the centres. The study identified the leading centres in terms of performance, and provided a diagnosis that suggests how less efficient centres might improve their efficiency. We also assessed regional and environmental factors that could facilitate or impede a centre|s performance such as scale, vintage and urban density.

Keywords: Data Envelopment Analysis; medical research; productivity; R&D programme evaluation; clinical research; infrastructure.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHTM.2000.001091

International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management, 2000 Vol.2 No.5/6, pp.403-424

Published online: 30 Jun 2003 *

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