Page 144 - Effective healthcare cost containment policies Using the Netherlands as a case study - Niek W. Stadhouders

Chapter 7
tuning rather than standardization” (p.24) (Pawson et al., 2005). Hence, the empirical findings are embedded within descriptive context.
The review was conducted from August until October 2015, and updated in June 2017. Data management was done by using Mendeley and Excel. Four databases were searched: Scopus, SocINDEX, Web of Science and EconLit. Grey literature were excluded. The searches in the relevant databases were updated in June 2017. Different search terms were tested before the actual selection of the articles, to reassure the quality and relevance of the included hits. Table 7.1 shows the search terms (see Appendix table 7.7 for further details).
7.2.3 Search strategy
Table 7.1: Search terms
Outcome
private hospital OR privatization OR public-private hospital, OR hospital ownership OR for
profit hospital
efficiency OR health care quality OR health care accessibility AND NOT: job satisfaction OR
intervention
Inclusion criteria
OR hospital admission OR patient admission OR health care Medicare in
delivery OR affordability OR health care utilization OR <2008, United states in health care availability Keywords)
Journal articles in English after 2000
keywords (for
Figure 7.1 shows the flow chart of the review process. Only research after 2000, conducted in the EU and articles written in English were included. Papers were excluded by matching them with the five PICOS criteria (Table 7.2). In order to safeguard quality and limit selection bias, the full-text and appraisal stage was carried out by two reviewers.
7.2.4 Selection criteria
Total hits (original & updated): Scopus=1499, EconLit=129, SocINDEX=56, Web of Science=1604
Backward and forward snowballing
Excluded Scopus=1412 EconLit=110 SocINDEX=55 Web of Science=1526
Selected based upon Title and Abstract Backward: 75 Forward: 427
Full-text and Quality Appraisal: Total: 39 articles
Figure 7.1: Flow chart of selection process
136
PICOS criteria: Title and Abstract
PICOS criteria: Full-text and Quality appraisal
Excluded 94
Duplicates 56
Total articles in review: 35
Total articles in review: 10