REAL Demand Research Unit
The REAL Demand Research Unit aims to improve understanding of the demand for health and social care by analysing its determinants, including demographics, technology, public expectations, income growth and how socioeconomic and environmental factors affect health.
Examples of our areas of research
- Healthcare expenditure
- Measures of inequality
- Mental health in young people
- The health and social determinants that drive the demand for social care in an older population
- Understanding the need and demand for social care
- Market failures and social care.
Our research will provide evidence-based recommendations for policy interventions that contribute to the development of sustainable and equitable health and social care systems. We have a dedicated public advisory group to ensure our research reflects the priorities and experiences of the communities affected by the rising demand in health and social care.
Our analyses include the allocation of resources and the resilience of healthcare systems.
On an individual level, we are exploring health and social conditions that drive the demand for health and social care services. In the long term, this research will inform policies that address the needs of affected individuals and facilitate their access to appropriate care and support.
The REAL Demand Research Unit is a collaboration between the Health Economics Research Centre, the Applied Health Research Unit, and the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, in partnership with researchers at the Department of Economics, Centre for Experimental Social Sciences at the University of Oxford, and the Centre for Health Economics at the University of York.
We collaborate with the Health Foundation’s REAL Centre (Research and Economic Analysis for the Long term) and their REAL Supply Research Unit.
The REAL Demand Research Unit is funded by The Health Foundation's REAL Centre’s programme to develop evidence by conducting economic and health policy research to support better long-term decision making in health and social care.