Aim and content

This course is free of charge for PhD students at Danish universities (except Copenhagen Business School), and for PhD Students from NorDoc member faculties. All other participants must pay the course fee.

Anyone can apply for the course, but if you are not a PhD student at a Danish university, you will be placed on the waiting list until enrollment deadline. This also applies to PhD students from NorDoc member faculties. After the enrollment deadline, available seats will be allocated to applicants on the waiting list.

Learning objectives
A student who has met the objectives of the course will be able to:

1. Critically assess the role of healthcare registers in drug utilization research. This objective focuses on understanding the strengths and limitations of using register data for studying drug use patterns.
2. Design and implement research studies using register data to evaluate drug safety and effectiveness in real-world settings. This objective emphasizes the practical skills of applying register-based methods to investigate drug safety and efficacy in a real-world context.
3. Interpret and communicate findings from register-based drug utilization studies, considering potential biases and limitations. This objective highlights the importance of critically evaluating research findings and effectively communicating them to different audiences, taking into account biases and limitations inherent to register data.
4. Identify emerging trends and future directions in register-based drug utilization research. This objective encourages students to think critically about the evolving landscape of register-based research and identify potential future applications for studying drug use patterns.

Content
Fundamentals of Drug Utilization Research using Healthcare Registers delves into the application of healthcare registers to understand and analyze drug utilization patterns in real-world settings. Here, the focus is on uncovering insights into how medications are used in everyday practice, beyond the controlled environment of clinical trials.

1. Introduction to Drug Utilization Research:

• Concepts and goals of drug utilization research
• Importance of studying real-world medication use patterns
• Limitations of traditional clinical trials in reflecting true drug utilization

2. Healthcare Registers as a Data Source for Drug Utilization:

• Types of healthcare registers relevant to drug utilization (e.g., prescription databases, dispensing records)
• Understanding and interpreting register data structure and content
• Data quality considerations specific to drug utilization research

3. Advanced Drug Utilization Analysis Techniques:

• Design and implementation of observational studies for drug utilization analysis (e.g., medication adherence studies, medication switching patterns)
• Statistical methods for analyzing drug utilization patterns in register data
• Introduction to data mining and machine learning techniques for drug utilization research

4. Programming for Drug Utilization Analysis (Hands-on Session):

• Introduction to programming language(s) relevant for register data analysis (e.g., R)
• Programming exercises specifically designed for drug utilization research tasks (e.g., data cleaning, descriptive analysis, data visualization)

5. Utilizing Synthetic Real-World Data (Hands-on Session):

• Understanding the concept of synthetic real-world data (SRWD)
• Working with simulated healthcare register data mimicking real-world medication use patterns
• Applying learned analysis techniques and programming skills to analyze SRWD
• Evaluating the impact of different factors on medication use patterns through practical exercises

6. Applications of Drug Utilization Research:
• Investigating medication adherence and persistence with register data
• Analyzing factors influencing drug choice and prescribing patterns
• Identifying potential medication overuse or underuse based on real-world data
• Studying medication safety signals through drug utilization analysis (complementary to dedicated safety research)

7. Communication and Dissemination of Research Findings:

• Interpreting and presenting drug utilization research findings
• Communicating research insights to relevant stakeholders (e.g., healthcare professionals, policymakers, pharmaceutical companies)
• Ethical considerations in drug utilization research using healthcare registers

This curriculum emphasizes drug utilization as the core focus, equipping students with advanced analysis techniques and programming skills to unlock valuable insights from healthcare registers. By incorporating hands-on sessions with synthetic real-world data, participants will gain practical experience in analyzing drug utilization patterns and applying their knowledge to real-world scenarios.
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Participants
The maximum number of participants is 20. The course is open for PhD students and junior researchers. Students from outside the Nordic countries can also apply. All applicants must have basic and documented skills in using statistical software (i.e., R, Python) for data management, and have – at a minimum – basic level knowledge in epidemiology and statistics. Blended Learning Approach: By providing access to video lectures prior to the course, participants can familiarize themselves with the core concepts and essential knowledge at their own pace. This enables a deeper understanding of the subject matter and sets the stage for engaging discussions and practical exercises during the in-person session.
Recorded Sessions: We understand the value of flexibility and acknowledge that participants may have conflicting schedules. Therefore, all sessions will be recorded, ensuring that even if you are unable to attend the live event, you won’t miss out on the content. The recorded sessions will be made available for review, allowing you to revisit key topics and reinforce your learning experience.

Relevance to graduate programmes
The course is relevant to PhD students from the following graduate programmes at the Graduate School of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH:

Pharmaceutical Sciences (Drug Research Academy)

Public Health and Epidemiology

Biostatistics and Bioinformatics

Language
The course will be in English

Form
The course will include lectures, group work, and exercise classes. It is compulsory to participate in individual work and group work. Any absence will have to be compensated by extra individual assignments outside the course periods and provided by the course organizers. The examination will be performed as an oral and written presentation of group work. Additionally, each student will be assessed individually.

Course director
Assoc. Prof. Maurizio Sessa,
Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen – maurizio.sessa@sund.ku.dk

Teachers
Professor Morten Andersen MD, PhD
University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark – morten.andersen@sund.ku.dk
Professor Björn Wettermark MscPharm, PhD
Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden – bjorn.wettermark@farmaci.uu.se
Mohammadhossein Hajiebrahimi MD, PhD
Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden – hossein.hajiebrahimi@farmaci.uu.se

Dates
27-31 October 2025

Course location
TBA, PharmaSchool, Universitetsparken 2/Jagtvej 160, 2100 Copenhagen

Registration
Please register before 1 September 2025

Expected frequency
Every two years

Seats to PhD students from other Danish universities will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis and according to the applicable rules.
Applications from other participants will be considered after the last day of enrolment.

Note: All applicants are asked to submit invoice details in case of no-show, late cancellation or obligation to pay the course fee (typically non-PhD students). If you are a PhD student, your participation in the course must be in agreement with your principal supervisor.

Disclaimer:
DDSA has explicit permission from Arcanic and the owners of the https://phdcourses.dk/ website to display the courses on ddsa.dk.