Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40067943›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of public health2025

The validation of the Needs Examination, Evaluation, and Dissemination assessment framework within the European Union: a modified Delphi study.

Rani Claerman, Laurence Kohn, Muriel Levy, Irina Cleemput, Claudia Schönborn, Charline Maertens de Noordhout, Robby De Pauw

Abstract readValidation Study
In one paragraph

Article in European journal of public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Refining the NEED (Needs Examination, Evaluation and Dissemination) Methods for Use in Psychotic Disorders in Belgium: Lessons From the Design Phase.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Rani ClaermanDepartment of Epidemiology and Public Health, Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium.ORCID 0009-0005-7261-1198
Laurence KohnKCE, Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, Brussels, Belgium.ORCID 0000-0003-4835-2024
Muriel LevyKCE, Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, Brussels, Belgium.
Irina CleemputKCE, Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, Brussels, Belgium.
Claudia SchönbornKCE, Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, Brussels, Belgium.
Charline Maertens de NoordhoutKCE, Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, Brussels, Belgium.ORCID 0000-0003-0379-0768
Robby De PauwDepartment of Epidemiology and Public Health, Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium.

Funding

Belgian Health Care Knowledge CentreBelgian Science Policy Office RT/23/NEED
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The NEED (Needs Examination, Evaluation, and Dissemination) assessment framework was designed to identify and measure unmet health-related needs of patients and society across various health conditions, aiding the development of needs-driven healthcare policy and innovation. The framework consists of 25 needs criteria and 46 associated indicators that assess whether these needs are met or not. This study aims to validate the framework at the European Union (EU) level using a modified Delphi approach. We selected national and European institutes for the Delphi process based on their roles in public health, health technology assessment (HTA), medicine authorization, pricing and reimbursement (P&R), and patient advocacy. Using a modified Delphi approach, experts provided feedback on the framework's structure (dimensions and domains), health-related needs criteria, and indicators. Two Delphi rounds were conducted via online questionnaires. A panel of 26 experts participated in both rounds of the study. The majority of the participants reported expertise in HTA (50%) and P&R (15%), followed by patient advocacy (15%) and public health (8%). Seventeen EU Member States were represented, with a higher representation of experts from Belgium (12%) and Germany (12%). The NEED framework based on expert consensus consists of 4 dimensions, 3 domains, 24 criteria, and 43 indicators. The modified Delphi technique proved effective for validating the NEED framework at the EU level. This marks a critical first step toward consensus on defining and identifying unmet health-related needs, paving the way for a more needs-driven healthcare policy and innovation landscape.

Indexed as

Delphi TechniqueNeeds AssessmentEuropean UnionHealth PolicyHumansSurveys and QuestionnairesTechnology Assessment, Biomedical

Identifiers

PMID40067943
PMCPMC11967881

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.