scholarly journals Cost-benefit analysis of outsourcing cleaning services at Mahalapye hospital, Botswana

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Cali ◽  
Heather Cogswell ◽  
Mompati Buzwani ◽  
Elizabeth Ohadi ◽  
Carlos Avila

Objective: As part of its national privatization strategy to diversify the economy, Botswana has started outsourcing nonclinical services at seven public hospitals. Hospital managers are signing contracts without knowing whether outsourcing offers better value for money than “insourcing”. The objective of this study is to assist hospital administrators in making evidence-based outsourcing decisions.Methods: We conducted a cost-benefit analysis of cleaning services at Mahalapye Hospital. We take the hospital manager’s perspective when considering two alternatives: outsourcing, and “insourcing”. We used an activity-based costing approach and monetised benefits by weighting costs of the alternatives based on a service quality survey of hospital managers.Results: After adjusting per quality of the service, outsourcing provides greater value for money in terms of “cleanliness per pula spent” than insourcing. Incremental costs of outsourcing are Botswana Pula (BWP) 5 million (US $524,135) over five years but outsourcing is cost-beneficial after considering quality. The benefit-cost ratio of 1.06 means that outsourcing would return six cents in value for every dollar invested, resulting in net gains for Mahalapye Hospital of BWP 1.7 million (US $182,365) over five years.Discussion: Important lessons for hospital managers include: 1) Assessing the value of outsourcing requires information on the unit price of the outsourced services; 2) Outsourcing can be more costly than insourcing; 3) Outsourcing may be justified if it increases the quality of the service; 4) Collaboration between hospitals and vendors could reduce costs and increase benefits for both vendor and purchaser; and 5) Outsourcing should get more cost-beneficial as vendors and hospitals gain experience working together.Conclusions: The lessons from this study are relevant to other hospitals considering outsourcing agreements. Outsourcing requires managerial skills, supported by sound benchmark data and proper quality monitoring to streamline operations, achieve value for money and improve service delivery so hospitals can focus on core clinical services.

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1297
Author(s):  
Juntae Kim ◽  
Hyo-Dong Han ◽  
Wang Yeol Lee ◽  
Collins Wakholi ◽  
Jayoung Lee ◽  
...  

Currently, the pork industry is incorporating in-line automation with the aim of increasing the slaughtered pork carcass throughput while monitoring quality and safety. In Korea, 21 parameters (such as back-fat thickness and carcass weight) are used for quality grading of pork carcasses. Recently, the VCS2000 system—an automatic meat yield grading machine system—was introduced to enhance grading efficiency and therefore increase pork carcass production. The VCS2000 system is able to predict pork carcass yield based on image analysis. This study also conducted an economic analysis of the system using a cost—benefit analysis. The subsection items of the cost-benefit analysis considered were net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), and benefit/cost ratio (BC ratio), and each method was verified through sensitivity analysis. For our analysis, the benefits were grouped into three categories: the benefits of reducing labor costs, the benefits of improving meat yield production, and the benefits of reducing pig feed consumption through optimization. The cost-benefit analysis of the system resulted in an NPV of approximately 615.6 million Korean won, an IRR of 13.52%, and a B/C ratio of 1.65.


2020 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Maurilio de Souza Cazarim ◽  
João Paulo Vilela Rodrigues ◽  
Priscila Santos Calcini ◽  
Thomas Einarson ◽  
Leonardo Régis Leira Pereira

OBJECTIVE: To perform a cost-benefits analysis of a clinical pharmacy (CP) service implemented in a Neurology ward of a tertiary teaching hospital. METHODS: This is a cost-benefit analysis of a single arm, prospective cohort study performed at the adult Neurology Unit over 36 months, which has evaluated the results of a CP service from a hospital and Public Health System (PHS) perspective. The interventions were classified into 14 categories and the costs identified as direct medical costs. The results were analyzed by the total and marginal cost, the benefit-cost ratio (BCR) and the net benefit (NB). RESULTS: The total 334 patients were followed-up and the highest occurrence in 506 interventions was drug introduction (29.0%). The marginal cost for the hospital and avoided cost for PHS was US$182±32 and US$25,536±4,923 per year; and US$0.55 and US$76.4 per patient/year. The BCR and NB were 0.0, -US$26,105 (95%CI -31,850 – -10,610), -US$27,112 (95%CI -33,160–11,720) for the hospital and; 3.0 (95%CI 1.97–4.94), US$51,048 (95%CI 27,645–75,716) and, 4.6 (95%CI 2.24–10.05), US$91,496 (95%CI 34,700–168,050; p < 0.001) for the PHS, both considering adhered and total interventions, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The CP service was not directly cost-benefit at the hospital perspective, but it presented savings for forecast cost related to the occurrence of preventable morbidities, measuring a good cost-benefit for the PHS.


2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. 75-76
Author(s):  
Paul van Gils ◽  
Eelco Over ◽  
Anita Suijkerbuijk ◽  
Joran Lokkerbol ◽  
Ardine de Wit

INTRODUCTION:Due to their chronic nature and high prevalence, alcohol and cannabis addiction leads to a significant (disease) burden and high costs, both for those involved and for society. The latter includes effects on health care, quality of life, employment, criminality, education, social security, violence in the public and private domain, and traffic accidents. In the Netherlands, a considerable number of people with an alcohol or cannabis addiction currently do not receive addiction care. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is effective as a treatment for both alcohol and cannabis addiction and is widely used in specialized addiction care centers. This social cost-benefit analysis (SCBA) models costs and benefits of increasing the uptake of CBT for persons with an alcohol addiction and for adolescents with a cannabis addiction, taking into account a wide range of social costs and effects (1).METHODS:The method follows general Dutch guidance for performing SCBA. A literature search was conducted to evaluate efficacy of CBT for alcohol and cannabis dependence. In addition, the social costs of alcohol and cannabis addiction for society were mapped, and the costs of enhancing the uptake of CBT were explored. Costs and benefits of increased uptake of CBT for different social domains were modeled for a ten year period, and compared with current (unchanged) uptake during this period. Compliance problems (about 50 percent of clients do not finish CBT) and fall-back to addiction behavior (decrease of effects of CBT over time) were taken into account in model estimations.RESULTS:Per client treated with CBT, the estimated benefits to society are EUR10,000-14,000 and EUR9,700-13,000, for alcohol and cannabis addiction, respectively. These benefits result from reduced morbidity and mortality, improved quality of life, higher productivity, fewer traffic accidents, and fewer criminal activities.CONCLUSIONS:This SCBA shows that not only treated clients but also society will benefit from an increase in people treated with CBT in specialized addiction care centers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. S44
Author(s):  
E. Keller ◽  
W. Botha ◽  
A. Ortmann ◽  
L.R. Jorm ◽  
G.M. Chambers

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Sanni Yaya ◽  
Xiaonan Li

This paper offers a general guide on how to conduct a proper economic analysis for community-based intervention projects. Identification and quantification of costs and benefits are the focus of the cost benefit analysis. We categorize costs and benefits from human and physical perspectives and pay special attention to the measures of saving human lives accompanied by the proposed calculation methods. We recommend net present value and benefit-cost ratio as the criteria to assess projects and highlight some challenges remaining in the analysis.


2002 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 36 ◽  
Author(s):  
James K. Kirkwood

During the last century there were two distinct and profound changes in attitudes to animals. First, it became widely understood that human activities and anthropogenic changes to the environment present a serious threat to biological diversity. In response to this many programmes to protect habitat and to conserve species have been launched. Second, advances in various fields of science led to a strengthening belief in many societies that a wide range of animals may have the capacity for consciousness and thus suffering. This has led to growing concern for the welfare of animals - the quality of their lives - and to the development of extensive bodies of welfare legislation in many countries. Concerns for species conservation and concerns for individual animal welfare do not always pull in the same direction. Around the world, conflicts are becoming commonplace between those who believe it can be justifiable to compromise the interests of individual animals in order to prevent species extinctions and those who do not. Such conflicts may be addressed and hopefully avoided or minimized through use of an ethical review process in which conservation benefits and welfare costs are carefully identified, considered and weighed in a cost/benefit analysis. A second function of this review process is to ensure that, where the decision is taken to proceed with a conservation programme that may adversely affect the welfare of some individuals, all necessary steps are taken to minimize these threats and their possible impacts.


1968 ◽  
Vol 72 (685) ◽  
pp. 43-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Stratton

The terms “cost-effectiveness” and to a lesser degree “cost-benefit” analysis have become familiar words in the technical and national press, the former usually in relation to defence projects—the latter in relation to social projects, such as transport, power generation and building. Indeed, at the time of the last General Election the political correspondent of a national newspaper wrote, “Mr. Heath and Mr. Callaghan, Chancellor of the Exchequer, vied with each other in stressing the importance of cost-effectiveness, which used to be known as getting value for money”. The apparently simple concept of “value for money” raises three important issues: (i) how is “value” of defence and social projects quantified? (ii) what is the “money” involved, i.e. what are all the relevant costs? and (iii) what are the information and decision processes that are used in attempting to obtain “value for money“?


2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-197
Author(s):  
Gabriela Borz

This article explains variation in the quality of representation in the context of European Parliament elections. Specifically, it clarifies how voters relate to political parties on the issue of European integration and whether they are represented, misrepresented, or indifferent to this issue. The analysis shows that perceived benefits of European integration do drive a perfect voter-party match while perceived costs, when high, drive a perfect match between Eurosceptic voters and likeminded parties and make voters less indifferent. The analysis draws attention to the high number ofstatus quovoters who, in the absence of a party with similar views, could channel their vote towards a party promoting integration, but only if their knowledge about the EU and its benefits increases.


2014 ◽  
Vol 663 ◽  
pp. 596-603
Author(s):  
Zulhaidi Mohd Jawi ◽  
Aqbal Hafeez Ariffin ◽  
Yahaya Ahmad ◽  
Khairil Anwar Abu Kassim ◽  
Norlen Mohamed ◽  
...  

The newly established New Car Assessment Program for Southeast Asian Countries (ASEAN NCAP) has incorporated Safety Assist Technologies (SATs) in its automobile safety rating scheme. In order for any assessed car to be eligible for the maximum 5-star rating, it should first be equipped with Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and fitted with seatbelt reminder (SBR). However, since these SATs are not being evaluated in their performance by the means of field testing, this paper explains the benefit of having these SATs through Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) which help to rationalize the importance of SATs in preventing road accidents or mitigating severity of injuries. Due to data limitation, this preliminary CBA assessment will only be focusing on Malaysia’s situation and is based on published sources and the authors’ best estimates. This study also includes the Cost-Benefit Analysis on Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), which is the basis for ESC technology, in preparation for its inclusion in the future rating scheme to expedite the vision of making ABS as standard fit in all ASEAN’s passenger cars. The preliminary result shows that all technologies – ESC, SBR and ABS – appear to be cost-effective (benefit/cost-ratio > 3) or most likely cost effective (1 < benefit/cost-ratio < 3) in Malaysia’s road safety situation per se.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document