Assessment of public hospitals performance in Gaza governorates using the Pabón Lasso Model

Measuring hospital performance can be undertaken in different areas including efficiency, productivity, and quality. Many studies have been conducted using several indicators in this regard.

This study aimed at measuring efficiency of obstetrics and gynaecology, and paediatrics departments at the public hospitals affiliated with the Palestinian Ministry of Health in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

This descriptive study includes 12 hospitals; four (A-D) and eight (E-L) providing obstetrics and gynaecology, and paediatrics services, respectively. Data were collected from health annual reports for the 3-year study period. Pabón Lasso charts were drawn using Microsoft Excel 2013.

During the 3 years, hospitals B, D and C lied in zones 3, 1 and 2, respectively. Hospital A was in Zone 4 in 2016 and 2018, but in Zone 1 in 2017. In 2016, hospitals E, F and H were in Zone 3, while, hospitals I, J, K, and L were in Zone 1. In 2017, hospital G shifted from Zone 2 to Zone 3, and backed to Zone 2 in 2018. Hospital L has moved from Zone 1 to Zone 2 in 2018, whereas other hospitals have remained in the same zones. Inefficiency in hospitals provides an important opportunity for addressing the gaps in a quality and less costly manner. Emphasis antenatal care in primary healthcare is important. Further researches are required to cover other types of hospitals through employing frontier techniques of efficiency measurement.