Sisira Sarma, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Health Economics

Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry

The University of Western Ontario

London, Ontario N6A 5C1

Tel: (519) 661-2111 x 87583

Fax: (519) 661-3766

Western E-mail: ssarma2@uwo.ca

Schulich E-mail: Sisira.Sarma@schulich.uwo.ca

URL: http://publish.uwo.ca/~ssarma2/

 

 

 

Teaching

           

E9530b: Health Economics

 

 

Education

            Ph.D. (Economics)

M.Phil. (Economics)

M.A. (Economics)

B.A. (Economics Honours)

 

 

Research Interests

Health Economics

Health Econometrics

Cost-effectiveness

Health Policy

Health Services Research

 

Research Grants as PI

Sisira Sarma (PI). Start-up Grant, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of Western Ontario: $25,000 (2008 – 2012).

 

Sisira Sarma (PI) and Amardeep Thind (Co-I). Physician Supply at the Intensive Margin: The Case of Canadian Family Physicians. SSHRC Internal, University of Western Ontario: $7,000 (October 2008 – September 2009).  

 

Sisira Sarma (PI), M. Karen Campbell, Yun-Hee Choi, Jason Gilliland and Gregory Zaric (Co-Is). Econometric Analyses of Adult Obesity in Canada: Modifiable Risk Factors and Policy Implications. Canadian Institutes of Health Research: $281,027, October 2009 – September 2012).

 

Sisira Sarma (PI). Understanding the Impact of Practice Settings on Physician Behaviour and Patient Outcomes: The Implications for Health and Human Resources Planning (Principal Investigator), MOHLTC Career Scientist Award (Salary Award): $200,810 (2009 – 2011).

 

Sisira Sarma (PI), M. Karen Campbell, Yun-Hee Choi, Jason Gilliland and Gregory Zaric (Co-Is). Research to Prevent Adult Obesity. Private Donation from the Estate of Margaret May Dodge (through the University of Western Ontario): $25,000 (January 2011 – December 2012).

 

Sisira Sarma (PI) and Gregory Zaric (Co-I). Canadian Health Economics Study Group, Conference 2011. Canadian Institutes of Health Research: $12,817, (February 2011 – January 2012).

 

 

Research Grants as Co-I

Economic evaluation of tests to reveal the source of cancers of unknown primary (PI: Gregory Zaric). Canadian Institutes of Health Research: $173,829 (April 2011 – March 2013).

 

A Meta Analysis of Canadian Workplace Wellness Programs and the Impact of Sunlife Financial’s Healthy Returns Program on Employee Wellness, Productivity and 2-year Healthcare Costs (PI: Michael Rouse). The Sun Life Financial: $482,142 (May 2011– April 2015).

 

 

Refereed Publications

S. Sarma, M. Hajizadeh, A. Thind and R. Chan. The association between health information technology adoption and Family Physicians’ practice patterns in Canada: Evidence from 2007 and 2010 National Physician Surveys. Healthcare Policy, forthcoming.

 

M. Hajizadeh, M.K. Campbell and S. Sarma. Socioeconomic inequalities in adult obesity Risk in Canada: Trends and decomposition analyses. European Journal of Health Economics, forthcoming.

 

S. Sarma, R.A. Devlin, A. Thind and M. Chu. Canadian Family Physicians’ decision to collaborate: Age, Period and Cohort effects. Social Science & Medicine, 75(10), 2012, 1811-1819.

 

S. Jesmin, A. Thind and S. Sarma. Does team-based primary health care improve patients’ perception of outcomes? Evidence from the 2007-08 Canadian Survey of Experiences with Primary Health Care. Health Policy 105(1), 2012, 71-83.

 

A. Sepehri, S. Sarma, U. Oguzoglu and T. M. Pham. Does the financial protection of health insurance vary across providers? Vietnam’s experience. Social Science & Medicine, 73(4), 2011, 559-567.

 

S. Sarma, A. Thind, and M. Chu. Do new cohorts of family physicians work less compared to their older predecessors? The Evidence from Canada. Social Science & Medicine, 72(12), 2011, 2049-2058.

 

S. Sarma, R.A. Devlin, B. Belhadji and A. Thind. Does the way physicians are paid influence the way they practice? The case of Canadian Family Physicians’ work activity. Health Policy, 98(2-3), 2010, 203-217.

 

R.A. Devlin, S. Sarma and Q. Zhang. The role of supplemental coverage in a universal health insurance system: some Canadian evidence. Health Policy, 100(1), 2011, 81-90.

 

S. Sarma, R. A. Devlin and W. Hogg. Physician’s production of primary care in Ontario, Canada. Health Economics, 19(1), 2010, 14-30.

 

S. Sarma. Demand for outpatient health care: Empirical findings from rural India. Applied Health Economics and Health Policy, 7(4), 2009, 265-277.

 

A. Sepehri, S. Sarma and J. Serieux. Who is giving up the free lunch? The insured patients’ decision to access health insurance benefits and its determinants: evidence from a low-income country. Health Policy, 92(2-3), 2009, 250-258.

 

S. Sarma, G. Hawley and K. Basu. Transitions in living arrangements of Canadian seniors: Findings from the NPHS longitudinal data. Social Science & Medicine, 68(6), 2009, 1106-1113.

 

R. A. Devlin and S. Sarma. Do physician remuneration schemes matter? The case of Canadian family physicians. Journal of Health Economics, 25(7), 2008, 1168-1181.

 

A. Sepehri, S. Moshiri, W. Simpson and S. Sarma. Taking account of context: How important are household characteristics in explaining adult health-seeking behaviour? The case of Vietnam. Health Policy and Planning, 23(6), 2008, 397-407.

 

A. Sepehri, S.Sarma, W. Simpson and S. Moshiri. How important are individual, household and commune characteristics in explaining utilization of maternal health services in Vietnam? Social Science & Medicine 67(6), 2008, 1009-1017.

 

S. Uppal and S. Sarma. Aging, health and labour market activity: The case of India. Journal of World Health & Population 9(4), 2007, 1-19.

 

S. Sarma, K. Basu and A. Gupta. The influence of prescription drug insurance on psychotropic and non-psychotropic drug utilization in Canada. Social Science & Medicine, 65(12), 2007, 2553-2565.

 

S. Sarma and W. Simpson. A panel multinomial logit analysis of elderly living arrangements: Evidence from Aging in Manitoba Longitudinal Data, Canada. Social Science & Medicine 65(12), 2007, 2539-2552.

 

S. Sarma and H. Rempel. Household decisions to utilize maternal health care in rural and urban India. Journal of World Health & Population, 9(1), 2007, 24-45.

 

A. Sepehri, W. Simpson and S. Sarma. The influence of health insurance on hospital admission and length of stay – The case of Vietnam. Social Science & Medicine 63(7), 2006, 1757-1770.

 

A. Sepehri, S. Sarma and W. Simpson. Does public health insurance reduce financial burden? Empirical findings from the VLSS panel. Health Economics 15(6), 2006, 603-616.

 

S. Sarma and W. Simpson. A microeconometric analysis of Canadian health care utilization. Health Economics 15(3), 2006, 219-239.

 

 

Non-refereed Publications

S. Sarma, R. A. Devlin and A. Thind. Comments on “Progress of Ontario’s Family Health Team Model: A Patient-Centered Medical Home.” Annals of Family Medicine Invited Commentary published on March 30, 2011.

 

R. A. Devlin, S. Sarma and W. Hogg. Remunerating primary care physicians: Emerging directions and policy options for Canada. Healthcare Quarterly 9(3), 2006, 34-42.

 

S. Sarma and C. Peddigrew. The relationship between family physician density and health related outcomes: The Canadian evidence. Cahiers de Sociologie et de Démographie Médicales 48(1), 2008, 61-106.

 

Selected Conference Presentations

“Causal effect of leisure-time physical activity on obesity, diabetes, high BP and heart disease among Canadians, paper to be presented at the 47th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics Association, HEC Montréal, Quebec, May 30 – June 2, 2013.

 

“The Effect of Physical Activity on Adult Obesity in Canada: Evidence from Panel Data, ” presented at the 46th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics Association, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, June 7-10, 2012.

 

“Socioeconomic Inequalities in Adult Obesity Risk in Canada: Trends and Decomposition Analyses, ” presented at the 46th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics Association, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, June 7-10, 2012.

 

“Does Spatial Heterogeneity Influence Adult Obesity in Canada? Spatial Panel Data Analysis, ” presented at the 11th Annual Canadian Health Economists’ Study Group Meeting, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, June 6-7, 2012.

 

“Team-based Primary Health Care (PHC) Practice and Patient Perceptions of Health Care Outcomes: A Propensity Score Matching (PSM) Analysis using data from the 2007-2008 Canadian Survey of Experiences with Primary Health Care (CSCPHC),” presented at the 8th iHEA Conference (World Congress on Health Economics), Sheraton Centre, Toronto, Ontario, July 10-13, 2011.

 

“Does it matter how obesity is measured in social science literature? Some new findings from Canada,” presented at the 45th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics Association, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, June 2-5, 2011.

 

 “Team-based Primary Health Care (PHC) Practice and Patient Perceptions of Health Care Outcomes: A Propensity Score Matching (PSM) Analysis using data from the 2007-2008 Canadian Survey of Experiences with Primary Health Care (CSCPHC),” presented at the 45th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics Association, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, June 2-5, 2011.

 

“Do New Cohorts of Family Physicians Work Less Compared to their Older Predecessors? The Evidence from Canada,” presented at the 44th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, the Université Laval Québec City, Québec, May 28-30, 2010.

 

“Does Decline in Smoking Lead to Rise in Obesity? Panel Data Analysis from the Canadian NPHS,” presented at the Canadian Health Economics Study Group Meetings, McGill University, Montreal, Québec, May 26-27, 2010.

 

“Does the way physicians are paid influence the way they practice? The case of Canadian Family Physicians’ work activity,” presented at the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, May 29 – 31, 2009.

 

“Transitions in living arrangements of Canadian seniors: Findings from the NPHS longitudinal data,” presented at the Canadian Health Economics Study Group Meetings 2008, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, May 15-16, 2008 and the 42nd Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, June 6 – 8, 2008.

 

“Physician’s production of primary care in Ontario: Evidence from the 2004 National Physician Survey, Canada,” presented at the Canadian Health Economics Study Group 2006, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, May 11-12, 2006 and 2006 Health Canada Science Forum, Ottawa, Ontario, October 30-31, 2006.

 

“Determinants of elderly living arrangements: evidence from Aging in Manitoba Longitudinal data, 1971-96,” presented at the Canadian Health Economics Study Group 2005, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, May 25-26, 2005.

 

“Does public health insurance reduce financial burden? Empirical findings from the VLSS panel,” presented at the 38th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, June 4 – 6, 2004.

 

“Demand for outpatient health care in rural India: a nested multinomial logit approach,” presented at the 37th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, May 30 – June 1, 2003.

 

“A Microeconometric analysis of health care utilization in Canada: evidence from NPHS data,” presented at the 36th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Economics Association Conference, University of Calgary, Alberta, May 31 – June 2, 2002.

 

“Numerical methods for the solution of a human capital model,” presented at the 7th International Conference of the Society for Computational Economics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, June 28 – 29, 2001.

 

 

Reviewer

Journal of Health Economics (2010); Health Economics (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010); Applied Health Economics and Health Policy (2009); International Journal of Health Care Finance and Economics (2010); Health Policy (2009, 2010); Empirical Economics (2010); Demography (2008); Social Science & Medicine (2010, 2011); Canadian Medical Association Journal (2011); Health Services Research (2007); Health Policy and Planning (2010, 2011); International Journal for Equity in Health (2010); Pharmacoepidemiology & Drug Safety (2008, 2010); Indian Journal of Community Medicine (2009, 2009, 2010); National Medical Journal of India (2008); Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada -- Standard Research Grant (2009); CIHR -- HPM Peer Review Committee Member (2011-2012).

 

Memberships/Affiliation:

Canadian Economics Association (2001 - present)

Canadian Health Economists’ Study Group (2004 - present)

International Health Economics Association (2007 - present)

Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (2009 - present)

Population Health Intervention Research Network (2011 - present)