Effectiveness

Effectiveness refers to the ability of an intervention (e.g. drug, device, treatment, test, or pathway) to achieve its desired health outcome(s) in a typical, real-world clinical scenario and within the relevant patient population. Unlike efficacy, effectiveness refers to the intervention’s performance in the “real-world” (outside of randomised controlled trials), considerating factors like patient adherence, comorbidities and variations in clinical settings. Therefore, effectiveness data is primarily drawn from real-world evidence. When evaluated alongside costs and side effects in economic analyses, effectiveness can be measured in quality-adjusted life years.