Dataset Information

Out-of-Pocket Expenditure for Antenatal Care Amid Free Health Care Provision: Evidence From a Large Pregnancy Cohort in Rural Sri Lanka.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Global evidence suggests that high out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure negatively affects health service utilization and creates an economic burden on households during pregnancy. This study aimed to estimate the magnitude and associated factors of OOP expenditure for antenatal care (ANC) in a rural Sri Lankan setting by following up with a large pregnancy cohort (The Rajarata Pregnancy Cohort [RaPCo]) in Anuradhapura District, Sri Lanka.

Methods

Data were collected from July 2019 to May 2020. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect socioeconomic data and OOP expenditures in the first trimester. Self-administered questionnaires were used monthly to collect OOP expenditures in the second and third trimesters. In-depth financial information of 1,558 pregnant women was analyzed using descriptive statistics, nonparametric statistics, and a multiple linear regression model.

Results

The majority of participants used both government and private health facilities for ANC. The mean (standard deviation [SD]) OOP expenditure per ANC visit was US$4.18 (US$4.19), and the mean (SD) OOP expenditure for total ANC was US$57.74 (US$80.96). Pregnant women who used only free government health services also spent 28% and 14% of OOP expenditure on medicines and laboratory investigations. Household income (P<.001), household expenditure (P<.1), used health care mode (P<.05), maternal morbidities (P<.05), and the number of previous pregnancies (P<.1) were the statistically significant independent predictors of OOP expenditure. OOP expenditure per visit for ANC equals half of the daily household expenditure.

Conclusion

Despite having freely available government health facilities, most pregnant women tend to use both government and private health facilities and incur higher OOP expenditure. Free government health care users also incur a direct medical OOP expenditure for medicines and laboratory investigations. Monthly household income, expenditure, used health care mode, maternal morbidities, and the number of previous pregnancies are independent predictors of OOP expenditure.

SUBMITTER: Gunarathna SP

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10615247 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Out-of-Pocket Expenditure for Antenatal Care Amid Free Health Care Provision: Evidence From a Large Pregnancy Cohort in Rural Sri Lanka.

Gunarathna Sajan Praveena SP Wickramasinghe Nuwan Darshana ND Agampodi Thilini Chanchala TC Prasanna Indika Ruwan IR Agampodi Suneth Buddhika SB

Global health, science and practice 20231030 5

<h4>Introduction</h4>Global evidence suggests that high out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure negatively affects health service utilization and creates an economic burden on households during pregnancy. This study aimed to estimate the magnitude and associated factors of OOP expenditure for antenatal care (ANC) in a rural Sri Lankan setting by following up with a large pregnancy cohort (The Rajarata Pregnancy Cohort [RaPCo]) in Anuradhapura District, Sri Lanka.<h4>Methods</h4>Data were collected from ...[more]

PMID: 37903576

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Project description:Globally, more than a third of pregnant women are anemic, and progress in its prevention and control is slow. Sri Lanka is a lower-middle-income country with a unique public health infrastructure that provides multiple interventions across the lifecycle for anemia prevention, despite which anemia in pregnancy remains a challenge. Studying the factors associated with maternal anemia in this context would provide unique information on challenges and opportunities encountered as low-and-middle-income countries attempt to control anemia by improving health care coverage. All first-trimester pregnant women registered for antenatal care in the Anuradhapura district between July 2019 to September 2019 were invited to participate in the baseline of a cohort study. Interviewer-administered and self-completed questionnaires were used. Anemia was defined using a full blood count. A hierarchical logistic regression model was built to identify factors associated with anemia. Out of 3127 participants, 451 (14.4%) were anemic. According to the regression model (Chi-square = 139.3, p<0.001, n = 2692), the odds of being anemic increased with the Period of gestation (PoG) (OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 1.01-1.13). While controlling for PoG, age and parity, history of anemia (OR = 3.22, 95%CI = 2.51-4.13), being underweight (OR = 1.64, 95%CI = 1.24-2.18), having the last pregnancy five or more years back (OR = 1.57,95%CI = 1.15-2.15) and having used intrauterine devices for one year or more (OR = 1.63, 95%CI = 1.16-2.30) increased the odds of anemia. Breast feeding during the last year (OR = 0.66, 95%CI = 0.49-0.90) and having used contraceptive injections for one year or more (OR = 0.61,95%CI = 0.45-0.83) reduced the risk of anemia. Proxy indicators of being in frequent contact with the national family health program have a protective effect over the socioeconomic disparities in preventing early pregnancy anemia. Maintaining the continuum of care through the lifecycle, especially through optimizing pre and inter-pregnancy care provision should be the way forward for anemia control.

Project description:IntroductionHealthcare financing systems, dependent on out-of-pocket expenditure(OOPE), impose a heavy burden on those who use the services regularly, such as patients suffering from chronic diseases. High OOPE for health services leads to decreased utilization of the services and/or catastrophic health expenditure, which would significantly impede the achievement of Universal Health coverage.ObjectiveWe aimed to determine variations in OOPE and factors associated with Catastrophic Health Expenditure (CHE) of households with patients suffering from non-communicable diseases(NCDs) in four districts.MethodsA survey was conducted among 2344 adult patients having selected NCD/s. Multi-stage stratified cluster sampling selected respondents from 4 districts representing urban, rural, semi-urban, and estate. Data was collected using a validated interviewer-administered questionnaire. Logistic regression identified the predictors of CHE(> 40%). Significance was considered as 0.05.ResultsCommon NCDs were hypertension(29.1%), diabetes(26.8.0%), hyperlipidaemia(9.8%) and asthma(8.2%). Only 13% reported complications associated with NCDs. Fifty-six percent(N = 1304) were on regular clinic follow-up, and majority utilized western-medical government hospitals(N = 916,70.2%). There were 252 hospital admissions for chronic-disease management in the past 12 months. Majority(86%) were admitted to government sector hospitals. Most patients incurred nearly SLR 3000 per clinic visit and SLR 3300 per hospital admission. CHE was beyond 40% for 13.5% of the hospital admissions and 6.1% of the regular clinic follow-up. Patients admitted to private sector hospitals had 2.61 times higher CHE than those admitted to government sector hospitals.ConclusionsPatients with NCDs incurred high OOPE and faced CHE during healthcare seeking in Sri Lanka. The prevalence of NCDs and complications were high among the participants. Patients with chronic conditions incur high OOPE for a single clinic visit and a hospital admission. Patients incur high OOPE on direct medical costs, and district-wise variations were observed. The proportion with more than 40% CHE on monthly clinic care was high. Patients being followed up in the government sector are more likely to have CHE when obtaining healthcare and are more likely to face barriers in obtaining needed health services. The services rendered to patients with chronic conditions warrant a more integrative approach to reduce the burden of costs and related complications.

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Project description:Person-centered maternity care (PCMC) is defined as care which is respectful of and responsive to women's and families' preferences, needs, and values. In this cross-sectional study we aimed to evaluate the correlations among the degree of PCMC implementation, key indicators of provision of care, and women's satisfaction with maternity care in Sri Lanka. Degree of PCMC implementation was assessed using a validated questionnaire. Provision of good key practices was measured with the World Health Organization (WHO) Bologna Score, whose items include: 1) companionship in childbirth; 2) use of partogram; 3) absence of labor stimulation; 4) childbirth in non-supine position; 5) skin-to-skin contact. Women's overall satisfaction was assessed on a 1-10 Likert scale. Among 400 women giving birth vaginally, 207 (51.8%) had at least one clinical risk factor and 52 (13.0%) at least one complication. The PCMC implementation mean score was 42.3 (95%CI 41.3-43.4), out of a maximum score of 90. Overall, while 367 (91.8%) women were monitored with a partogram, and 293 (73.3%) delivered non-supine, only 19 (4.8%) did not receive labour stimulation, only 38 (9.5%) had a companion at childbirth, and 165 (41.3%) had skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth. The median total satisfaction score was 7 (IQR 5-9). PCMC implementation had a moderate correlation with women's satisfaction (r = 0.58), while Bologna score had a very low correlation both with satisfaction (r = 0.12), and PCMC (r = 0.20). Factors significantly associated with higher PCMC score were number of pregnancies (p = 0.015), ethnicity (p<0.001), presence of a companion at childbirth (p = 0.037); absence of labor stimulation (p = 0.019); delivery in non-supine position (p = 0.016); and skin-to-skin contact (p = 0.005). Study findings indicate evidence of poor-quality care across several domains of mistreatment in childbirth in Sri Lanka. In addition, patient satisfaction as an indicator of quality care is inadequate to inform health systems reform.

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Dataset Information

Out-of-Pocket Expenditure for Antenatal Care Amid Free Health Care Provision: Evidence From a Large Pregnancy Cohort in Rural Sri Lanka.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Out-of-Pocket Expenditure for Antenatal Care Amid Free Health Care Provision: Evidence From a Large Pregnancy Cohort in Rural Sri Lanka.

Similar Datasets

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