Beyond the hype: real-world evidence and healthcare decision making

Is real-world evidence the future of healthcare decision making, or is its role being overstated?

In a new blog, Professor Matthew Taylor, CEO of YHEC, explores the ongoing debate around real-world evidence (RWE) and its place in health technology assessment (HTA).

Professor Taylor argues that the fundamental challenge remains the same regardless of the data source: can observed outcomes be confidently attributed to the intervention being studied? Both randomised controlled trials and observational studies are susceptible to bias, including confounding, placebo effects and regression to the mean, and larger datasets do not automatically overcome these limitations.

Rather than viewing RWE as a replacement for clinical trials, Professor Taylor highlights the importance of combining evidence sources in a transparent and proportionate way to support robust decision making.

Read more. 

YHEC showcases research on sustainability, value and innovation at HTAi 2026

YHEC researchers attended the HTAi 2026 Annual Meeting in Istanbul, sharing research on some of the key challenges and opportunities facing health technology assessment (HTA).

Presentations covered topics including early HTA and environmental sustainability, the value of time-saving health technologies, and new approaches to conceptualising value within HTA. The meeting provided an excellent opportunity to share insights, engage with international colleagues, and contribute to discussions shaping HTA going forwards.

Visit our website for more details.

Distributional cost-effectiveness analysis and the future of HTA

In a YHEC blog, Hayden Holmes, Angel Varghese and Robert Malcolm discuss how distributional cost-effectiveness analysis (DCEA) is helping decision makers assess not just overall health gains, but how those gains are distributed.
They explore:

• What health equity means in economic evaluation.
• How DCEA quantifies trade-offs between efficiency and fairness.
• Growing international momentum (including NICE and global guidelines).
• Key challenges around data, consistency, and implementation.

As expectations on HTA evolve, incorporating equity considerations is becoming increasingly important for robust, policy-relevant analysis.

Read the full discussion. 

YHEC joins the conversation at NHS ConfedExpo

YHEC exhibited at NHS ConfedExpo, joining peers and partners to help drive improved outcomes for patients and the public.

YHEC attendees included Director of NHS Consulting, Nick Hex, and Project Directors Jo Hanlon, Rachael MacDonald and Angel Varghese. 

Find out more about our work with the NHS.

Will neighbourhood health shift the balance of care?

Neighbourhood health is emerging as a central pillar of the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan, but can it finally achieve what successive reforms have struggled to deliver?

Shifting care out of hospitals and into communities is not a new ambition. The challenge has always been whether health systems can make it work in practice, and whether it can deliver better outcomes, greater productivity and real value for money.

Nick Hex and Hannah Ross explore the economic and strategic questions at the heart of neighbourhood health, from integration and prevention to commissioning and long-term investment.

Read more. 

YHEC's Melissa Pegg wins Top Reviewer award at HTAi

We are delighted to share that YHEC Senior Research Consultant, Melissa Pegg, was recognised at the HTAi Annual Meeting 2026 with the Top Reviewer 2025 Award for the International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care (IJTAHC).

On receiving the award, Melissa said: "Reviewing manuscripts is one of the most rewarding aspects of being involved in the HTA and Health Economics community. It provides a unique opportunity to see emerging research, innovative methods, and new approaches that are shaping the future of HTA, health economics, and sustainable healthcare decision-making. The peer-review process also helps me continually learn, stay up to date with developments across the field, and broaden my understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing healthcare systems internationally.

I look forward to continuing to support the dissemination of high-quality evidence that informs better healthcare decision-making and sustainable development within health systems."

YHEC Project Director wins prestigious award

A huge congratulations to Robert Malcolm on being named Health and Medical Professional of the Year at the Yorkshire Young Professionals Awards.

The award recognises exceptional young professionals making a significant impact in their field, and it reflects the expertise, commitment and leadership that Robert brings to his work every day.

We're incredibly proud to see his contributions recognised in this way and look forward to seeing what he achieves next.

Read more about Robert's work. 

The YHEC team continues to grow

YHEC has recently welcomed several new colleagues. 

Project Director, Katy Hesselden (photo top left), re-joined YHEC after a period working for the British Medical Council. Katy brings a wealth of experience to the Reviews and Evidence Synthesis Service.

We were also joined by Medical Writer, Alice Knapton (photo top right), Research Consultant, Andra Marcu (photo bottom left), and Research Assistants, Anna Bowes (photo bottom right) and Daria Rawson. 

Staff news

Ellen Telfer-Thomas and Katie Murray have both been promoted to Research Consultant. 

Congratulations to them both!

The YHEC team tackles the Yorkshire Three Peaks

A team of YHEC colleagues is taking on the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge on Friday 03 July. This year we are raising money for Move Mates, a charity that supports people living with long-term health conditions to become more active and improve their quality of life.

There may be some tired legs around the office in July, but we're delighted to be supporting an organisation that helps so many people across our region.

Every donation, no matter the size, will help Move Mates continue delivering its important work. YHEC will match the money they raise pound-for-pound, so any sponsorship will be doubled!

Donate to support our fundraising.

Patient Reported Outcome Measures

How do we better measure the quality of life for children with peanut allergies? 

Traditional health-related quality of life instruments often struggle to capture the full impact of food allergies on children’s mental health and daily routines. A new study addresses this gap by deriving health utilities from the Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire using both mapping and discrete choice experiments.

The research is co-authored by YHEC’s Stuart Mealing, Charlotte Graham and Damian Lewis. 

Read the full paper.

PLOS Mental Health

New research in PLOS Mental Health, co-authored by YHEC’s Professor Matthew Taylor, Karina Watts, Hannah Ross and Emily Gregg, investigates the costs and benefits of workplace mental wellbeing.

The study developed a flexible economic model across different organisational settings, showing how outcomes vary depending on absenteeism, presenteeism, turnover and intervention cost.

The findings highlight a key point: value depends on context, and the strongest economic case emerges where workforce pressures are highest.

Read more.

Journal of Public Health

What if the biggest opportunity to improve population health is the one we already understand?

A new paper published in the Journal of Public Health, co-authored by YHEC CEO Professor Matthew Taylor, quantifies the substantial disease burden associated with modifiable risks across the UK, including tobacco use, poor diet, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and mental ill-health.

Read the paper. 

Health Technology Assessment

Long-term opioid use for chronic pain can cause significant harm, but reducing dependence without worsening pain remains a major challenge.

A new publication from the I-WOTCH RCT, co-authored by YHEC’s Joe Moss, found that a group-based educational and support intervention helped substantially more people stop opioid use compared with usual care, without negatively affecting pain interference.

The study also suggests the intervention may represent a cost-effective approach for supporting opioid tapering in chronic non-cancer pain.

Read more.

British Journal of Haematology

A new paper in the British Journal of Haematology addresses how to measure the impact of an ultra- rare condition when real-world data is limited. 

Linked data from England is analysed to evaluate the clinical and economic burden of congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (cTTP).

YHEC’s Erin Barker and Heather Riley co-authored this retrospective matched-cohort study.

Read the full publication.

Our gold standard team

At YHEC, we are committed to creating a supportive and collaborative workplace where people can develop their expertise, contribute meaningfully, and progress in their careers. Our culture encourages both individual growth and collective success.

This commitment to our people is reflected in our long-standing recognition by Investors in People. YHEC has held the accreditation for more than 25 years and currently holds Gold status. In our most recent assessment, we achieved a score of 765, significantly above the industry benchmark of 730, placing us among the top 30% of accredited organisations.

Check our website regularly for new vacancies.