Related Experiment Videos
[The social cost of chronic bronchitis in Mexico City: a pilot study]
L Avila-Burgos1, C Gutiérrez-Zúñiga, P Hernández-Peña
1Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública, México.
Objective:
To construct a comprehensive model to evaluate the social or overall impact of a chronic disease.
Material And Methods:
Case studies of a convenience sample of 28 patients seen at secondary and tertiary levels of health care services. Bronchitis was selected for evaluation. Among the variables included in the model are the direct costs of health care for bronchitis, the indirect costs or costs of opportunity, and the intangible costs or loss of quality of life. Information on costs estimated by the home institution was also included.
Results:
The social costs attributable to this condition are as high as $ 14 761.60 each case per year; 53% of this cost corresponds to case-management at health care services; 5% to household economic costs; 14% to intangible costs and 28% to production costs.
Conclusions:
The model allowed the identification of variables necessary to evaluate production, household and intangible costs, which have been seldom utilized in our country. Including these variables results in a more comprehensive economic evaluation of social costs of disease.