scholarly journals Rethinking the economic costs of hospitalization for malaria: accounting for the comorbidities of malaria patients in western Kenya

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline Watts ◽  
Harrysone Atieli ◽  
Jason Alacapa ◽  
Ming-Chieh Lee ◽  
Guofa Zhou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Malaria causes significant mortality and morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa, especially among children under five years of age and places a huge economic burden on individuals and health systems. While this burden has been assessed previously, few studies have explored how malaria comorbidities affect inpatient costs. This study in a malaria endemic area in Western Kenya, assessed the total treatment costs per malaria episode including comorbidities in children and adults. Methods Total economic costs of malaria hospitalizations were calculated from a health system and societal perspective. Patient-level data were collected from patients admitted with a malaria diagnosis to a county-level hospital between June 2016 and May 2017. All treatment documented in medical records were included as health system costs. Patient and household costs included direct medical and non-medical expenses, and indirect costs due to productivity losses. Results Of the 746 patients admitted with a malaria diagnosis, 64% were female and 36% were male. The mean age was 14 years (median 7 years). The mean length of stay was three days. The mean health system cost per patient was Kenyan Shilling (KSh) 4288 (USD 42.0) (95% confidence interval (CI) 95% CI KSh 4046–4531). The total household cost per patient was KSh 1676 (USD 16.4) (95% CI KSh 1488–1864) and consisted of: KSh 161 (USD1.6) medical costs; KSh 728 (USD 7.1) non-medical costs; and KSh 787 (USD 7.7) indirect costs. The total societal cost (health system and household costs) per patient was KSh 5964 (USD 58.4) (95% CI KSh 5534–6394). Almost a quarter of patients (24%) had a reported comorbidity. The most common malaria comorbidities were chest infections, diarrhoea, and anaemia. The inclusion of comorbidities compared to patients with-out comorbidities led to a 46% increase in societal costs (health system costs increased by 43% and patient and household costs increased by 54%). Conclusions The economic burden of malaria is increased by comorbidities which are associated with longer hospital stays and higher medical costs to patients and the health system. Understanding the full economic burden of malaria is critical if future malaria control interventions are to protect access to care, especially by the poor.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline Watts ◽  
Harrysone Atieli ◽  
Jason Alacapa ◽  
Ming-Chieh Lee ◽  
Guofa Zhou ◽  
...  

Abstract BackgroundMalaria causes significant mortality and morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa, especially among children under five years of age and places a huge economic burden on individuals and health systems. While this burden has been assessed previously, few studies have explored how malaria comorbidities affect inpatient costs. This study in a malaria endemic area in Western Kenya, assessed the total treatment costs per malaria episode including comorbidities in children and adults.MethodsTotal economic costs of malaria hospitalisations were calculated from a health system and societal perspective. Patient-level data were collected from patients admitted with a malaria diagnosis to a county-level hospital between June 2016 and May 2017. All treatment documented in medical records were included as health system costs. Patient and household costs included direct medical and non-medical expenses, and indirect costs due to productivity losses.ResultsOf the 746 patients admitted with a malaria diagnosis, 64% were female and 36 % were male. The mean age was 14 years (median 7 years). The mean length of stay was three days. The mean health system cost per patient was Kenyan Shilling (KSh) 4,288 (USD 42.0) (95% confidence interval (CI) 95%CI KSh 4,046-4,531). The total household cost per patient was KSh 1,676 (USD 16.4) (95%CI KSh 1,488-1,864) and consisted of: KSh 161 (USD1.6) medical costs; KSh 728 (USD 7.1) non-medical costs; and KSh 787 (USD 7.7) indirect costs. The total societal cost (health system and household costs) per patient was KSh 5,964 (USD 58.4) (95%CI KSh 5,534- 6,394). Almost a quarter of patients (24%) had a reported comorbidity. The most common malaria comorbidities were chest infections, diarrhoea, and anaemia. The inclusion of comorbidities compared to patients with-out comorbidities led to a 46% increase in societal costs (i.e. health system costs increased by 43% and patient and household costs increased by 54%). ConclusionsThe economic burden of malaria is increased by comorbidities which are associated with longer hospital stays and higher medical costs to patients and the health system. Understanding the full economic burden of malaria is critical if future malaria control interventions are to protect access to care, especially by the poor.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Ghaffari Darab ◽  
Khosro Keshavarz ◽  
Elnaz Sadeghi ◽  
Javad Shahmohamadi ◽  
Zahra Kavosi

Abstract This study aimed to estimate both direct medical and indirect costs of treating the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from a societal perspective in the patients at a referral hospital in Fars province as well as the economic burden of COVID-19 in Iran in 2020.Methods:This is a partial economic evaluation and a cross-sectional cost-description study conducted descriptively-analytically and based on the data of the COVID-19 patients referred to a referral university hospital in Fars province between March and July 2020. The data were collected by examining the patients' records and accounting information systems. The subjects included all the inpatients with COVID-19 (477 individuals) who admitted to the medical centre during the four months. Bottom-up costing, incidence-based and income-based human capital approaches were used as the main methodological features of this study.Results: The mean direct medical costs were estimated 28,240,025,968 Rials ($ 1,791,172) in total and 59,203,409 Rials ($ 3,755) per person, a significant part of which (41 %) was that of intensive and general care beds (11,596,217,487 Rials equal to $ 735,510. (The second to which were the costs of medicines and medical consumables (28 %). The mean indirect costs including income loss due to premature death, economic production loss due to hospitalization and job absenteeism during recovery course were estimated 129,870,974 Rials ($ 11634) per person. Furthermore, the economic burden of the disease in the country for inpatient cases with the definitive diagnosis was 22,688,925,933,095 Rial equal to $ 1,439,083,784.Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the severe status of the disease would bring about the extremely high cost of illness in this case. It is estimated that the high prevalence rate of COVID-19 has been imposing a heavy economic burden on the country and health system directly that may result in rationing or painful cost-control approaches.


Circulation ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 130 (suppl_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander T Sandhu ◽  
Kathikeyan G ◽  
Ann Bolger ◽  
Emmy Okello ◽  
Dhruv S Kazi

Introduction: Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) strikes young adults at their peak economic productivity. Defining the global economic burden of RHD may motivate investments in research and prevention, yet prior approaches considering only medical costs may have underestimated the cost of illness. Objectives: To estimate the clinical and economic burden of RHD in India and Uganda. Outcomes were disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), direct medical costs, and indirect costs due to disability and premature mortality (2012 USD). Methods: We used a discrete-state Markov model to simulate the natural history of RHD using country-, age-, and gender-specific estimates from the literature and census data. We estimated direct medical costs from WHO-CHOICE and Disease Control and Prevention 3 publications. We conservatively estimated indirect costs (lost earnings and imputed caregiver costs) from World Bank data using novel economic methods. Results: In 2012, RHD generated 6.1 million DALYs in India and cost USD 10.7 billion (Table 1), including 1.8 billion in direct medical costs and 8.9 billion in indirect costs. During the same period, RHD produced 216,000 DALYs in Uganda, and cost USD 414 million, and, as in India, indirect costs represented the majority (88%) of the cost of illness. In both countries, women accounted for the majority (71-80%) of the DALYs; in Uganda, women bore 75% of the total cost. In sensitivity analyses, higher progression rates for subclinical disease doubled direct costs and DALYs. Conclusion: RHD exacts an enormous toll on the populations of India and Uganda, and its economic burden may be grossly underestimated if indirect costs are not systematically included. Women bear a disproportionate clinical burden from pregnancy-related complications. These results suggest that effective prevention and screening of RHD may represent a sound public health investment, particularly if targeted at high-risk subgroups such as young women.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. e0250113
Author(s):  
Cebisile Ngcamphalala ◽  
Ellinor Östensson ◽  
Themba G. Ginindza

Background Cervical cancer imposes considerable economic burden on societies and individuals. There is lack of evidence regarding this from the developing world and particularly from sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, the study aimed to estimate the societal costs of cervical cancer in Eswatini. Materials and methods The cost of illness study (CoI) was applied using national specific clinical and registry data from hospitals, registries and reports to determine the prevalence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer in Eswatini in 2018. Cost data included direct medical costs (health care utilization in inpatient and outpatient care), direct non-medical costs (patient costs for traveling) and indirect costs based on productivity loss due to morbidity (patient time during diagnosis and treatment) and premature mortality. Results The estimated total annual cost for cervical cancer was $19 million (ranging between $14 million and $24 million estimated with lower and upper bounds). Direct cost represented the majority of the costs at 72% ($13.7 million) out of which total pre-cancerous treatment costs accounted for 0.7% ($94,161). The management of invasive cervical cancer was the main cost driver with costs attributable to treatment for FIGO III and FIGO IV representing $1.7 million and $8.7 million respectively. Indirect costs contributed 27% ($5.3 million) out of which productivity loss due to premature mortality represented the majority at 67% ($3.5 million). Conclusion The economic burden of cervical cancer in Eswatini is substantial. National public health prevention strategies with prophylactic HPV vaccine and screening for cervical lesions should therefore be prioritized to limit the extensive costs associated with cervical cancer.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grace Yang ◽  
Inna Cintina ◽  
Anne Pariser ◽  
Elisabeth Oehrlein ◽  
Jamie Sullivan ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: To provide a comprehensive assessment of the total economic burden of rare diseases (RD) in the U.S. in 2019.We followed a prevalence-based approach that combined the prevalence of 379 RDs with the per-capita direct medical and indirect costs, to derive the national economic burden by patient age and type of RD. To estimate prevalence and the direct medical cost of RD, we used claims data from three sources: Medicare 5% Standard Analytical File, Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System, and Optum claims data for the privately insured. To estimate indirect and non-medical cost components, we worked with the rare disease community to design and implement a primary survey.Results: There were an estimated 15.5 million U.S. children (N=1,322,886) and adults (N=14,222,299) with any of the 379 RDs in 2019 with a total economic burden of $997 billion, including a direct medical cost of $449 billion (45%), $437 billion (44%) in indirect costs, and $111 billion (11%) in non-medical costs. The top drivers for excess medical costs associated with RD are hospital inpatient care and prescription medication; the top indirect cost categories are labor market productivity losses due to absenteeism, presenteeism, and forced early retirement.Conclusions: Our findings highlight the scale of the RD economic burden and call for immediate attention from the scientific communities, policy leaders, and other key stakeholders such as health care providers and employers, to think innovatively and collectively, to identify new ways to help improve the care, management, and treatment of these often-devastating diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol In Press (In Press) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hadi Hamidi Parsa ◽  
Abedin Saghafipour ◽  
Alireza Koohpaei ◽  
Babak Farzinnia ◽  
Mohsen Barouni

Background: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has placed heavy direct and indirect economic burden on the people and the health system. Objectives: The present study aimed to estimate the economic burden of COVID-19 in Qom Province, using the step-down cost accounting (SDCA) method. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study included all COVID-19 patients in Qom Province from February 19, 2020, to June 19, 2020. The patients’ data were collected in the form of major cost groups with integrated health system (IHS), health information system (HIS), and a financial software called Roozamad. The governmental, out-of-pocket, and opportunity costs paid by patients and hospitals were calculated and evaluated using SDCA in Microsoft Excel software. Results: The incidence of COVID-19 infection was 518 per 100,000 populations in Qom Province in the aforementioned period. The total government costs for the treatment of the patients were calculated to be 2,229,216,930,370 Rials (8,916,867 $). Among the major governmental cost groups, personnel costs accounted for the highest total expenditures. In addition, out-of-pocket costs of patients and their families equaled 30,038,013,060 Rials (120,152 $). The costs of final service departments accounted for more than half of the total costs. The opportunity costs were calculated as 420 billion Rials (15.68% of total costs). Conclusions: According to the findings, the direct and indirect costs associated with the treatment of COVID-19 patients can impose a heavy economic burden on the households and health care system. Therefore, disease prevention strategies such as observing health protocols are recommended to reduce the burden of the disease.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
yan yang ◽  
Lvya Wang ◽  
Ya Yang ◽  
Wenhui Wen ◽  
Mi Tang ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: The study aimed to investigate the treatment pattern and economic burden of homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HoFH) in China, and to evaluate the incidence rate of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) of HoFH patients and their families.Methods: Patients with HoFH diagnosed and treated in Beijing An’Zhen Hospital was included. A questionnaire was developed to investigate and capture the relevant variables of the participants.Results: A total of 120 HoFH patients were investigated, and the number of children (age under 18) was 1.2 times more than adults (age above 18). There were 113 patients with basic medical insurance (including 61 patients with new rural cooperative medical insurance), 4 patients with commercial insurance and 3 patients without any insurance. There were 35 patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), including 29 adults and 6 children. Only 6 pediatric patients achieved their low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) treatment targets, and all 54 adult patients did not achieve it. The most commonly used treatment method was diet control with lipid-lowering drugs (16.67%), followed by diet control and lipid-lowering drugs using separately (16.67%). The proportion of patients whose annual personal income reached GDP per capita in 2019 was only 2.5%. The total economic burden of disease was 5,529,100 CNY / year, including direct medical costs of 3,427,200 CNY / year, direct non-medical costs of 1,504,500 CNY / year and indirect costs of 611,300 CNY / year; the per capita economic burden of disease was 46,100 CNY / year, including direct medical costs of 28,600 CNY / year, direct non-medical costs of 12,500 CNY / year and indirect costs of 5,100 CNY / year. There were 32 families with CHE due to the disease, accounting for 26.67%.Conclusion: Patients with HoFH in China are generally at young age, and the economic burden of disease for the family is heavy. The existing treatment is not effective, and it is easy to cause premature death due to ASCVD.


Author(s):  
A. S. Kolbin ◽  
Yu. M. Gomon ◽  
O. I. Karpov ◽  
Yu. E. Balykina ◽  
M. A. Proskurin

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a chronic genetic disease with social significant weight because it influences on social humanitarian part of health and on sources of health care system as well. Materials and methods. Data of CF Register and treatment methodology based on clinical guidelines were used for analysis. Direct and indirect medical costs as well as indirect costs have been calculated per one patient per year. Direct costs included diagnostic costs and treatment based on Obligatory medical Insurance fund tariffs, costs of drugs and medical devices, rehabilitation, payments due to disability; indirect costs included loss of GDP. Results. Total expenditures were calculated as 3,1 mln RUR for one patient annually, direct medical costs were 71 % of total. Main part of expenditures was allocated for out-patient stage of treatment — 1,57 mln RUR. Exacerbations costs were estimated as 399,4 thousand RUR. Indirect medical cost was 314,6 thousand RUR, and indirect cost as 582,9 thousand RUR as well annually. Total economic burden of CF for Russian Federation was calculated as 10,37 bln RUR/year, main part was a direct medical expenditures — 73 %. Conclusion. CF is a big social-economic burden in the Russian conditions. Reducing the number of exacerbations and improving lung function, as well as increasing the life expectancy of patients with CF due to introduction of new technologies in health care (targeted therapy) is aimed at reducing the social burden of the disease, which will require increasing the availability of effective (targeted) drugs in the future.


2020 ◽  
pp. 014556132090633
Author(s):  
Şule Özdemir ◽  
Doğukan Özdemir ◽  
Özlem Terzi ◽  
Dursun Mehmet Mehel ◽  
Abdulkadir Özgür

Objective: Vertigo and dizziness are the common presenting concerns in emergency departments and outpatient clinics, accounts for approximately 15% to 20% of adults annually. We aimed to evaluate economic burden of vertigo on health-care system and work productivity in association between clinic characteristics of in- or outpatients. Methods: A total number of 2289 patients diagnosed with peripheric (noncentral) vertigo were evaluated retrospectively. The direct medical costs associated with vertigo classified as medication, consumable, imaging, and laboratory. In addition, the indirect costs were associated with lost working days. The overall economic impact of vertigo assessed via total expenditure for diagnosis and treatment. Results: The mean duration of hospitalization was 5.6 ± 4.3 days and working day lost was 9.47 ± 3.90 days. The overall impact on work productivity of disease was 15.35 ± 6.11 days. The overall mean direct cost including all expenditure items associated with vertigo care was $250.25 ± $1479.62 per patient. The overall cost associated with vertigo was found to be statistically increased in the male, aged ≥65 years, widow or divorced, and hospitalized patients. Conclusions: Our findings clearly indicate that a vertigo–dizziness management program based on patients’ risk factors may achieve to reduce hospitalizations and cost of hospital care as well.


Author(s):  
Amrit Banstola ◽  
Jesse Kigozi ◽  
Pelham Barton ◽  
Julie Mytton

The evidence of the economic burden of road traffic injuries (RTIs) in Nepal is limited. The most recent study, conducted in 2008, is now considered outdated because there has been a rapid increase in vehicle numbers and extensive road building over the last decade. This study estimated the current economic costs of RTIs in Nepal, including the direct costs, productivity costs, and valuation of pain, grief, and suffering. An incidence-based cost-of-illness analysis was conducted from a societal perspective, employing a bottom-up approach using secondary data. All costs incurred by the patients, their family members, and costs to society were estimated, with sensitivity analyses to consider uncertainty around the data estimates available. Productivity loss was valued using the human capital approach. The total costs of RTIs in 2017 were estimated at USD 122.88 million. Of these, the costs of productivity loss were USD 91.57 million (74.52%) and the pain, grief, and suffering costs were USD 18.31 million (14.90%). The direct non-medical costs were USD 11.50 million (9.36%) whereas the direct medical costs were USD 1.50 million (1.22%). The economic costs of RTIs increased by threefold since 2007 and are equivalent to 1.52% of the gross national product, indicating the growing national financial burden associated with preventable RTIs.


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