Research Papers (Articles)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://192.168.30.20:4000/handle/123456789/189

Browse

End date: 2019Subject: search.filters.subject.Tanzania

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Cost of dialysis in Tanzania: Evidence from the provider’s perspective
    (Health Economics Review, 2015) Mushi, Lawrencia; Krohn, Markus; Flessa, Steffen
    Background: Although End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is a disease of increasing epidemiological relevance very little is known about the cost of providing the respective dialysis services in Tanzania. This paper estimates the costs of dialysis for ESRD patients at Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH) in Tanzania in the year 2014. Methods: Cost calculations are based on the provider's perspective and include only the direct cost of dialysis treatment. The cost of drugs and consumables was obtained from the price list issued by the Medical Stores Department (MSD) in Tanzania. Additional data were collected through face-to-face interviews with experts at the dialysis unit. Results: MNH performs on average 442 hemodialysis per month (34 patients, with three sessions per week) with a personnel placement of 20 nurses, four nephrologists, eight registrars, one nutritionist, two biomedical engineers, four health attendants and nine dialysis machines. The respective average unit cost per hemodialysis is 176 US$. Consequently, an average patient requiring three dialyses per week (i.e. 156 dialyses per year) will incur annual costs of 27,440 US$. Conclusion: The cost of dialysis is enormous for a least-developed country like Tanzania where resources and technology are rather limited. Thus, from the economic point of view, it seems rational to allocate health care budgets towards curable diseases, which have a higher cost-effectiveness and cater for the majority of the population. However, before a final decision on allocation of budgets towards dialysis is made all efforts must be invested to improve technical efficiency by cutting the enormous unit cost.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Health insurance for informal workers: What is hindering uptake? Perspectives from female food vendors in Kinondoni district, Tanzania
    (East African Journal of Applied Health Monitoring and Evaluation, 2019) Mushi, Lawrencia; Milanzi, Peter
    BACKGROUND Health insurance among people of low income, such as female food vendors and others in the informal sector, is one of the vital steps towards universal health coverage in Tanzania. Little is known to explain the reasons for the low enrolment of informal workers in health insurance schemes. We studied what is hindering the uptake of health insurance among female food vendors in Kinondoni district in Dar es Salaam. METHODS The study took place from January to March 2018. A mixed methods design was employed using a quantitative questionnaire and qualitative interviews. We included 75 respondents of which 70 were female food vendors selected using the snow-balling method. Five respondents were officials from the National Health Insurance Fund, who were purposefully selected. RESULTS Almost half of respondents (45.7%) were earning less than TZS 100,000 (equivalent to US $44.80) a month. Most (82.9%) could not afford health insurance. Attitudes did not affect the uptake of health insurance as the majority (60.0%) agreed that health insurance is vital for their survival. However, a majority (63.4%) of respondents did not know how health insurance works. CONCLUSION The low level of income and limited awareness of health insurance options limited enrolment into health insurance. Interventions should ensure that everyone is enrolled irrespective of economic status. Moreover, the government should design innovative strategies to increase awareness about health insurance.