Medical costs of childbirth and caesarean sections in Burkina Faso: a national assessment

Abstract

As part of the public policies of access to maternal health care, health centres provide services to the populations
and are later reimbursed by the government without knowing the actual costs. The objectives of
this study were to determine the actual costs of deliveries in Burkina Faso.
This is a cross-sectional survey conducted between June and August 2014 in all the hospitals, medical centres
and two basic health centres per municipality. The actual medical costs included the service provided, drugs
and consumables, paraclinical examinations and hospitalization.
A total of 949 women from 544 public health centres were analyzed. The sample included 579 eutocic,
202 dystocic and 168 C-sections deliveries. At the national level, the average actual medical cost was
3,180 (±1,255), 13,305 (±6,865) and 55,830 (±14,800) CFA francs respectively for an eutocic, dystocic and
cesarean delivery. regardless of the type of delivery, drugs and consumables accounted for more than half
of the costs. The average medical cost varied by health region, type of delivery, and level of care (p <0,001).
These results suggest that a flat-rate reimbursement, depending on the type of service provided, must take
into account the level of care.