Abstract
In a time of increasing threats and decreasing financial resources, monitoring and controlling all possible foodborne hazards at the same time and to the same extent has become more challenging than ever. Therefore, attention is increasingly being paid to the so-called “risk ranking” methods that enable decision makers to focus on the most important foodborne hazards — even when time is limited and knowledge incomplete. In this review paper, we provide an overview of the most common quantitative methods and metrics used for ranking the risks associated with foodborne parasites and present the state of the art on risk ranking exercises for foodborne parasites.A number of risk ranking metrics and methods are available, ranging from simple approaches that can be used to assess the health or economic impact of a foodborne parasitic disease, to more complicated but more comprehensive multi-criteria assessments. For health impact assessment, measures of population health such as disease occurrence and number of deaths; Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) measuring the healthy life years lost; and Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) measuring the number of life years lived in optimal health, are described. For economic impact assessment, applied approaches that measure the cost-of-illness from a societal perspective and stated preference methods are outlined. Finally, Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA), which can be used to integrate multiple metrics and criteria into a single ranking, is described.These risk ranking methods for foodborne parasites are increasingly performed to aid priority setting at global, regional, and national levels. As different stakeholders have their own prioritization objectives and beliefs, the outcome of such exercises is necessarily context-dependent. Therefore, when designing a risk ranking exercise for foodborne parasites, it is important to choose the metrics and methods, as well as what to rank, in the light of the predefined context of the question being addressed and the target audience.
Highlights
In a time of increasing threats and decreasing financial resources, it has become more challenging than ever to monitor and control all possible foodborne hazards at the same time and to the same extent (Speybroeck et al, 2015)
We aim to provide an overview of the most common quantitative methods and metrics used for ranking foodborne parasites according to their associated risks
We provide the state of the art on risk ranking exercises for foodborne parasites
Summary
In a time of increasing threats (or recognition, c.q., perception thereof) and decreasing financial resources, it has become more challenging than ever to monitor and control all possible foodborne hazards at the same time and to the same extent (Speybroeck et al, 2015). Attention is being increasingly directed on methods that enable decision makers to focus on the most important foodborne hazards — even when time is limited and knowledge incomplete (Stella et al, 2013). These exercises are often labeled “risk ranking”, but may differ widely in their intention, scope and methodology. According to the Codex Alimentarius, risk is defined as “a function of the probability of an adverse health effect and the severity of that effect, consequential to a hazard(s) in food” (CAC (Codex Alimentarius Commission), 1999). The same goal, which is to accomplish an internally consistent and comparable set of risk estimates allowing ranking, and prioritization among a given number of hazards, is shared in all risk ranking exercises
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