Productivity Trend in Iranian Health Sector: A Descriptive Approach

Abstract

Background: Low productivity and consequently increased health costs can cause various problems in society and the welfare of individuals. The first effect of the high cost of production in the health sector is the collapse of hospitals and health centers into a cost-inflation spiral.

Methods: This was a descriptive-analytical study. A review section has been revised to describe the concept of productivity through narrative literature review in the descriptive section, using the time series data of 1991-2012 of the Statistics Center of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The micro and macro indicators of health economy and health sector productivity are presented and analyzed graphically with the help of Excel software

Results: From the economic point of view, productivity is defined as the ratio of output to input. The results showed that inflation in the health sector was higher than general inflation in the period under study and that out of pocket expenses were made to cope with inflation in the health sector. On the other hand, the growth rate of production in the entire health sector was decreased, and the number of physicians and bed potency was reduced.

Conclusion: The final result of this study showed that the productivity of the health sector is not in good condition. Despite the increase in the number of beds and doctors in the last two decades, the added-value and production of the entire health sector have not grown significantly.