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The Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition
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ISSN: 1606-0997 EISSN: 1606-0997
Vol. 30, No. 2, 2012, pp. 205-212
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Bioline Code: hn12026
Full paper language: English
Document type: Research Article
Document available free of charge
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The Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition, Vol. 30, No. 2, 2012, pp. 205-212
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Costs of Maternal Health-related Complications in Bangladesh
Hoque, Mohammad Enamul; Powell-Jackson, Timothy; Dasgupta, Sushil Kanta; Chowdhury, Mahbub Elahi & Koblinsky, Marge
Abstract
This paper assesses both out-of-pocket payments for healthcare and losses of productivity over six months
postpartum among women who gave birth in Matlab, Bangladesh. The hypothesis of the study objective
is that obstetric morbidity leads women to seek care at which time out-of-pocket expenditure is incurred.
Second, a woman may also take time out from employment or from doing her household chores. This loss
of resources places a financial burden on the household that may lead to reduced consumption of usual
but less important goods and use of other services depending on the extent to which a household copes
up by using savings, taking loans, and selling assets. Women were divided into three groups based on their
morbidity patterns: (a) women with a severe obstetric complication (n=92); (b) women with a less-severe
obstetric complication (n=127); and (c) women with a normal delivery (n=483). Data were collected from
households of these women at two time-points - at six weeks and six months after delivery. The results
showed that maternal morbidity led to a considerable loss of resources up to six weeks postpartum, with
the greatest financial burden of cost of healthcare among the poorest households. However, families coped
up with loss of resources by taking loans and selling assets, and by the end of six months postpartum, the
households had paid back more than 40% of the loans.
Keywords
Healthcare costs; Health financing; Health shocks; Maternal health; Bangladesh
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