JLUMHS (Sep 2017)

Cost Estimates for Medicines and Laboratory Investigations for Tehsil Headquarter Hospitals of Punjab

  • Naqvi Hamad,
  • Muhammad Khan Ranjha,
  • Zahida Sarwar

DOI
https://doi.org/10.22442/jlumhs.171630528
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 16, no. 03
pp. 171 – 175

Abstract

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INTRODUCTION: Medicine budget allocation in health facilities usually focus on past funding levels and the efficiency of health services delivery. Despite the level of allocation to hospitals, there is a growing gap between available and required medicine budget because the health needs have not diminished. This gap has led us for medicine consumption costing of tehsil headquarters hospitals of Punjab. OBJECTIVE: To assess average medicine cost including laboratory investigations for indoor and outdoor patient treated at tehsil headquarter hospital of Punjab, working under Punjab Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department. SETTING: The cost of medicines consumption is estimated both for inpatient as well as outpatients of tehsil headquarter hospitals of Punjab. METHODOLOGY: Ten tehsil headquarter (THQ) hospitals were selected out of 129 THQ hospitals of Punjab through simple random sampling technique; 2 indoor and 2 outdoor patients were again chosen through simple random sampling technique from each ward of selected THQs and free medicine were dispensed to these selected patients.Cross sectional study design is used and cost of medicine consumption is observed from the patients of randomly selected sample hospitals at single point time or time interval. RESULTS: This study provides an estimated medicine cost for treating all indoor and outdoor patients at all THQ hospitals under Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department of Punjab. The average cost per outpatient visit is estimated as Rs. 172.46 and the average cost per admission for inpatient care is Rs. 2992.50.Total medicines consumption estimated cost for 129 tehsil headquarter hospitals is Rs 7.18 billion. CONCLUSION: The current study identified gap between allocated medicines budget and actual medicines needed by the patients. In future this study may provide guidelines to policy maker while calculating actual justified budget allocation for medicines, diagnostic and other supplies to fulfill the patient’s requirement effectively and efficiently.

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