Dr Jonas Fooken
About
I’m an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at The University of Queensland’s Centre for the Business and Economics of Health. My background in behavioural, public and health economics spans more than 15 years. I have been involved in classical academic research and teaching, as well as in collaborative research with industry, public service, and policy professionals during this time.
My goal as an academic researcher and economist is to contribute to society by improving our understanding of individual and group behaviour, and to advance our knowledge about how behaviour affects, and is affected by, our health, wellbeing, and society’s economic prosperity.
With a pragmatic approach and a focus on finding quantifiable solutions, I draw on insights from behavioural and health economics to understand the “human factor” in the complex problems we face. Understanding what humans will do in a model and in reality is important to predict how individuals in health care, both suppliers and consumers, will respond to new policies, interventions, and therapies.
Research interests
Private health insurance: how private health insurance contributes to our healthcare system and the effect it has on our health.
Health as a determinant of economic productivity: how nutrition, health, and economic productivity interplay – for example, how stress and the management of stress affects worker performance.
Economic and financial decisions of older adults: how ageing affects risk, social and time preferences and implications of these changes for decisions in healthcare and beyond.
Research impact
My research enables healthcare organisations to introduce new and review existing policies and programs to deliver healthcare efficiently, effectively and equitably. For example, I’ve recently worked on research with West Moreton Oral Health Service to improve and optimise their management of medical instruments, and with the Department of Veteran Affairs to identify effective pathways to support their clients through rehabilitation services. Similarly, I’m currently working with an indemnity insurer to tackle determinants of errors by healthcare workers, with the aim to reduce errors and therefore risks to consumers.