Dr Sopany Saing is a Research Fellow at Centre for Health Economics Research and Evaluation (CHERE) and has completed a PhD at the University of Technology Sydney with her thesis titled “Modelling the cost-effectiveness of strategies to treat end stage heart failure using discrete event simulation”.

Her PhD research explores economic modelling methods including simulation modelling to incorporate resource constraints in health technology assessment using the heart transplant waiting list as a case-study.

She has completed a Master’s in Public Health (Health Economics and Health Policy) at the University of Sydney. Her interest in health economics started with a double undergraduate degree – a Science /Commerce at University of New South Wales.

“This was one of the few avenues that made full use of my undergraduate training,” she said.

Her research comprises three main components:

• Contract research – assisting the government in evaluating submissions from drug and medical technology companies, assessing the clinical effectiveness, cost effectiveness and likely effect on the budget.
• Economic evaluation alongside clinical trials – determining the cost/benefit of a drug, treatment or program for a given population.
• Simulation modelling and complex modelling methods in estimating decision problems with a resource constraint, with a particular focus on heart transplants.


Sopany has completed a Bachelor of Commerce (Business Economics) and a Bachelor of Science (Honours Class I Medical Microbiology and Immunology) from the University of New South Wales.

Since joining CHERE she has reviewed and conducted evaluations for Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and the Medical Services Advisory Committee. She has also completed a number of commissioned projects for Food Standards Australia and New Zealand , NSW Health, Australian Government Department of Health and NSW Department of Communities and Justice.

She has received a UTS Research Re-establishment Grant and Faculty of Business Grant.

She has taught health technology assessment at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level.

Before joining CHERE, Dr Saing worked in health economic consulting at the CIE (Centre for International Economics) and in medical research and business development at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. At the CIE, she prepared health economic commissioned reports for health programs.

“I want to focus on developing more complex methods for economic evaluation,” she said.

“If we utilise simulation modelling in Health Technology Assessment, we can more accurately answer the trickier problems out there.”