Dirk Sauerland

Dirk Sauerland is a full Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Business and Society at the University of Witten/Herdecke, where he holds the Chair of Institutional Economics and Health Policy. He also serves as Program Director for the faculty. His academic career includes previous positions at the University of Münster and WHL Lahr, with international engagements at institutions like RAND Health (USA) and ITAM/UNAM (Mexico).

Education:

• Diploma in Economics, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster (1992)
• PhD in Economics, WWU Münster (1996)
• Habilitation (Venia legendi) in Economics, WWU Münster (2001)

Research Focus: Sauerland specializes in health economics, institutional analysis, and policy design. His work examines economic burdens of healthcare interventions, institutional frameworks in social market economies, and methodological innovations in cost evaluation. Key themes include pediatric chronic conditions, nosocomial infections, and dementia care economics, often employing cross-country comparative studies.

Publication Trends: Recent articles emphasize empirical cost-benefit analyses in healthcare, particularly pediatric chronic pain and hospital-acquired infections. His scholarship consistently integrates institutional economics with health policy, reflecting on systemic efficiency, equity, and governance reforms in Germany and Europe.

Awards:

• Walter Eucken Prize (Second Prize, 1994)

Leadership & Grants: As Director of the Wittener Institut für institutionellen Wandel (WIWA) and Dr. Hartmut Krafft-Zentrum für Wirtschaft und Gesundheit, he oversees interdisciplinary health economics research. He secured €8.1 million in Innovation Fund support for the KoCoN project improving care for children with neurological diseases.

Professional Engagement: Member of the Supervisory Board at Evangelisches Klinikum Niederrhein; active in academic associations including the International Health Economics Association and Verein für Socialpolitik.