Photo of Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson

Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson

Lecturer

My research lies at the intersection of public health, health economics, and implementation science. I study the long-term effects of preventive interventions, with a particular focus on health equity, resource allocation, and implementation.

Presentation

Health economics + Public Health + Implementation science

My research focuses on how population health can be improved while ensuring that societal resources are used efficiently and equitably.

 Currently, I am involved in a research project evaluating the Swedish “Good and Close Care” (God och nära vård) reform. The project examines how different stakeholders perceive and interpret the reform, which components have been implemented in practice, and the factors that facilitate or hinder its implementation.

 I also study the long-term health economic consequences of preventive interventions. Using health economic modelling, I investigate how changes in health behaviours, such as reduced alcohol consumption or smoking, may affect future disease burden and healthcare costs. A particular area of interest is health equity, where I explore how health outcomes and resources are distributed across different population groups.

 Another research interest is the integration of health economics and implementation science. Given the resource constraints facing healthcare systems, it is essential to understand not only which interventions provide good value for money, but also how they can be successfully implemented and sustained in real-world settings.

Publications

2026

Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson, Martin Henriksson, Marcus Bendtsen (2026) Long-term outcomes of a digital alcohol intervention targeting online help-seekers: a simulation study of incidence of disease, quality-adjusted life-years and costs BMJ Public Health, Vol. 4, Article e003503 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjph-2025-003503
Joel Crawford, Jenny Blomqvist, Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson, Preben Bendtsen, Marcus Bendtsen (2026) Individualized Treatment Effects of a Digital Smoking Cessation Intervention Among Individuals Looking Online for Help: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial JMIR mhealth and uhealth, Vol. 14, Article e63578 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.2196/63578
Per Nilsen, Jeanette Wassar Kirk, Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson, Kristin Thomas (2026) Matters arising: a critique of "Nuancing the continuum from ideal to real-world implementation" by Eldh et al. 2025 Implementation Science Communications, Vol. 7, Article 12 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s43058-025-00853-3

2025

Per Nilsen, Jeanette Wassar Kirk, Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson, Kristin Thomas (2025) Tempering implementation optimism: distinguishing between efficacy and effectiveness in implementation research Implementation Science Communications, Vol. 6, Article 90 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s43058-025-00781-2
Joel Crawford, Elizabeth S. Collier, Katarina Ulfsdotter Gunnarsson, Gillian Shorter, Jim McCambridge, Oskar Lundgren, Marcus Bendtsen (2025) Effects of a drinking motives and readiness to change tailored digital alcohol intervention among online help-seekers: protocol for a randomised controlled trial BMJ Open, Vol. 15, Article e100532 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2025-100532

Organisation