Out-of-pocket payments for unintentional injuries: a study in rural Bangladesh

This paper studies the nature and extent of out-of-pocket expenses for unintentional injuries, using the context of rural Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study consisting of 23,113 people was performed through multistage cluster sampling. Chi-square analysis and pie-diagrams were used. A total of 3411 injury victims were identified in this survey. Only 14% of victims received government medical assistance while 17% of victims benefited from public health care and 13% benefited from private health care facilities. However, 94% of the injury victims have purchased drugs out-of-pocket. With a minimum of US $0.07 and maximum of US $140 their mean out-of-pocket payment for drugs was US $4 (half of the Bangladeshis are living under US $1 per day). Instead of relying on public health care facilities most rural Bangladeshi people spent money from their own pockets for treatments. Proper health care distribution with a community-based insurance scheme and safety awareness programmes are warranted to reduce both injury and economic burdens.