Suchergebnisse

To aid informed health sector decision-making, data from sufficient high quality economic evaluations must be available to policy makers. To date, no known study has analysed the quantity and quality of available Iranian economic evaluation studies. This study aimed to assess the quantity, quality and targeting of economic evaluation studies conducted in the Iranian context. The study systematically reviewed full economic evaluation studies (n = 30) published between 1999 and 2012 in international and local journals. The findings of the review indicate that although the literature on economic evaluation in Iran is growing, these evaluations were of poor quality and suffer from several major methodological flaws. Furthermore, the review reveals that economic evaluation studies have not addressed the major health problems in Iran. While the availability of evidence is no guarantee that it will be used to aid decision-making, the absence of evidence will certainly preclude its use. Considering the deficiencies in the data identified by this review, current economic evaluations cannot be a useful source of information for decision makers in Iran. To improve the quality and overall usefulness of economic evaluations we would recommend; 1) developing clear national guidelines for the conduct of economic evaluations, 2) highlighting priority areas where information from such studies would be most useful and 3) training researchers and policy makers in the calculation and use of economic evaluation data.

Background The cost of maternity care can be a barrier to access that may increase maternal and neonatal mortality risk. We analyze spending on maternity care in urban slum communities in Mumbai to better understand the equity of spending and the impact of spending on household poverty. Methods We use expenditure data for maternal and neonatal care, collected during post-partum interviews. Interviews were conducted between 2005-2006, with a sample of 1200 slum residents in Mumbai (India). We analyse expenditure by socio-economic status (SES), calculating a Kakwani Index for a range of spending categories. We also calculate catastrophic health spending both with and without adjustment for coping strategies. This identifies the level of catastrophic payments incurred by a household and the prevalence of catastrophic payments in this population. The analysis also gives an understanding of the protection from medical poverty afforded by coping strategies (e.g. saving, borrowing etc). Results A high proportion of respondents spent catastrophically on care. Lower SES was associated with a higher proportion of informal payments. Indirect health expenditure was found to be (weakly) regressive as the poorest were more likely to use wage income to meet health expenses, while the less poor were more likely to use savings. Overall, the incidence of catastrophic maternity expenditure was 41% or 15% when controlling for coping strategies. We found no significant difference in the incidence of catastrophic spending across wealth quintiles, nor could we conclude that total expenditure is regressive. Conclusions High expenditure as a proportion of household resources should alert policymakers to the regressive burden of maternal spending in this context. Differences in informal payments, significantly regressive indirect spending and the use of savings versus wages to finance spending, all highlight the heavier burden borne by the most poor. If a policy objective is to increase institutional deliveries without forcing households deeper into poverty, these inequities will need to be addressed. Reducing out-of-pocket payments and better regulating informal payments should have direct benefits for the most poor. Alternatively, targeted schemes aimed at assisting the most poor in coping with maternal spending (including indirect spending) could reduce the household impact of high costs.

The nutritional status of women and men before conception has profound implications for the growth, development and long-term health of their offspring. Evidence of the effectiveness of preconception interventions in improving outcomes for mothers or babies is scarce, though given the large potential health return, relatively low costs and risk of harm, intervention is still warranted. We identify three promising strategies for intervention that are likely to be scalable and to have positive effects on a range of health outcomes: supplementation and fortification; cash transfers; and behaviour change interventions. Based on this, we suggest a model specifying pathways to effect. Pathways are incorporated into a lifecourse framework using individual motivation and receptiveness at different 'preconception action phases' to guide design and targeting of preconception interventions. Interventions with those not planning immediate pregnancy take advantage of settings and implementation platforms outside the maternal and child health arena, since this group is unlikely to be engaged with maternal health services. Interventions to improve women's nutritional status and health behaviours at all preconception action phases need to take account of social and environmental determinants to avoid exacerbating health and gender inequalities, and should be underpinned by a social movement that touches the whole population. A dual strategy that targets specific groups actively planning a pregnancy, while improving the health of the population more broadly, is proposed. The engagement of modern marketing techniques points to a social movement based on an emotional and symbolic connection between improved maternal nutrition and health prior to conception and offspring health. We suggest that speedy and scalable public health benefit might be achieved through strategic engagement with the private sector. Political theory supports the development of an advocacy coalition of groups interested in preconception health, to harness the ...

Summary The nutritional status of both women and men before conception has profound implications for the growth, development, and long-term health of their offspring. Evidence of the effectiveness of preconception interventions for improving outcomes for mothers and babies is scarce. However, given the large potential health return, and relatively low costs and risk of harm, research into potential interventions is warranted. We identified three promising strategies for intervention that are likely to be scalable and have positive effects on a range of health outcomes: supplementation and fortification; cash transfers and incentives; and behaviour change interventions. On the basis of these strategies, we suggest a model specifying pathways to effect. Pathways are incorporated into a life-course framework using individual motivation and receptiveness at different preconception action phases, to guide design and targeting of preconception interventions. Interventions for individuals not planning immediate pregnancy take advantage of settings and implementation platforms outside the maternal and child health arena, since this group is unlikely to be engaged with maternal health services. Interventions to improve women's nutritional status and health behaviours at all preconception action phases should consider social and environmental determinants, to avoid exacerbating health and gender inequalities, and be underpinned by a social movement that touches the whole population. We propose a dual strategy that targets specific groups actively planning a pregnancy, while improving the health of the population more broadly. Modern marketing techniques could be used to promote a social movement based on an emotional and symbolic connection between improved preconception maternal health and nutrition, and offspring health. We suggest that speedy and scalable benefits to public health might be achieved through strategic engagement with the private sector. Political theory supports the development of an advocacy coalition ...

Background: Childhood stunting (low height-for-age) is a marker of chronic undernutrition and predicts children's subsequent physical and cognitive development. An estimated 52 million children in India are stunted. There is a broad consensus on determinants of child undernutrition and interventions to address it, but a lack of operational research testing strategies to increase the coverage of these interventions in high burden areas. Our study aims to assess the impact, costeffectiveness, and scalability of a community intervention involving a government-proposed community-based worker to improve growth in children under two.