TY - JOUR
T1 - Injuries and their related household costs in a tertiary hospital in Ghana
AU - Blankson, Paa Kwesi
AU - Nonvignon, Justice
AU - Aryeetey, Genevieve
AU - Aikins, Moses
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 African Federation for Emergency Medicine
PY - 2020/1
Y1 - 2020/1
N2 - Introduction: Injuries remain a leading cause of death in many developing countries, accounting for more deaths than HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. This study set out to determine the associated patient costs of reported injury cases at the Accident and Emergency Department of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra, Ghana. Method: A cross-sectional retrospective Cost-of-Illness study of 301 sampled patients was undertaken, following a review of injured patients' records from January–December 2016. Direct cost, (consisting of consultation, surgery, medicines, transportation, property damage, food and consumables) was estimated. Indirect cost was calculated using the Human capital approach. Intangible cost was assessed using Likert scale analysis. The overall household cost, average cost of various injuries and intangible costs were determined. Results: The total annual household cost of injuries to patients who attended KBTH was US$11,327,461.96, of which 82% was the direct cost. The average household cost of injuries was US$ 1276.15. All injuries recorded some level of high intangible cost but was exceptional for burns. Conclusion: Injured patients incur high direct treatment cost in all aetiology, with generally high intangible cost as well. It is therefore imperative that injury prevention strategies be prioritized in national health policies, while broader discussions continue on sustainable health financing of injury management.
AB - Introduction: Injuries remain a leading cause of death in many developing countries, accounting for more deaths than HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. This study set out to determine the associated patient costs of reported injury cases at the Accident and Emergency Department of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra, Ghana. Method: A cross-sectional retrospective Cost-of-Illness study of 301 sampled patients was undertaken, following a review of injured patients' records from January–December 2016. Direct cost, (consisting of consultation, surgery, medicines, transportation, property damage, food and consumables) was estimated. Indirect cost was calculated using the Human capital approach. Intangible cost was assessed using Likert scale analysis. The overall household cost, average cost of various injuries and intangible costs were determined. Results: The total annual household cost of injuries to patients who attended KBTH was US$11,327,461.96, of which 82% was the direct cost. The average household cost of injuries was US$ 1276.15. All injuries recorded some level of high intangible cost but was exceptional for burns. Conclusion: Injured patients incur high direct treatment cost in all aetiology, with generally high intangible cost as well. It is therefore imperative that injury prevention strategies be prioritized in national health policies, while broader discussions continue on sustainable health financing of injury management.
KW - Direct cost
KW - Economic
KW - Ghana
KW - Household
KW - Indirect cost
KW - Injuries
KW - Intangible cost
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85085298565&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.afjem.2020.04.004
DO - 10.1016/j.afjem.2020.04.004
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85085298565
SN - 2211-419X
VL - 10
SP - S44-S49
JO - African Journal of Emergency Medicine
JF - African Journal of Emergency Medicine
ER -