The high cost of free tuberculosis services: patient and household costs associated with tuberculosis care in Ebonyi State, Nigeria.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Poverty is both a cause and consequence of tuberculosis. The objective of this study is to quantify patient/household costs for an episode of tuberculosis (TB), its relationships with household impoverishment, and the strategies used to cope with the costs by TB patients in a resource-limited high TB/HIV setting.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted in three rural hospitals in southeast Nigeria. Consecutive adults with newly diagnosed pulmonary TB were interviewed to determine the costs each incurred in their care-seeking pathway using a standardised questionnaire. We defined direct costs as out-of-pocket payments, and indirect costs as lost income.

Results

Of 452 patients enrolled, majority were male 55% (249), and rural residents 79% (356), with a

SUBMITTER: Ukwaja KN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3754914 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature