Joana Pestana is a researcher and an Assistant Professors (adjunct) at Nova School of Business and Economics. In 2024, she obtained her Ph.D. in Economics from this university, under the supervision of Professor Pedro Pita Barros. Joana was also part of the European PhD training network, "Improving Quality of Care in Europe," funded by the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant from the European Commission. In 2024 she joined Intuitive Surgical, the maker of Da Vinci & Ion Robotic Systems, as a research scientist, specializing in research scientist,. Since 2018, she has been a researcher at the Health Economics & Management Knowledge Center and a member of the Portuguese Health Economics Association. Before pursuing her Ph.D., she worked in IT and consulting in the financial sector.