The Woes of Economic Burden of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Cases Borne by Public Sector Hospital of Pakistan

Objectives: To highlight the role of public sector hospitals in sharing the major burden of severely head injured patients in a resource constrained economically striving countryMaterials and Methods: The study was conducted in the Neurosurgery department of Jinnah Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan. 70 patients with moderate to severe TBI cases above one year of age were included. The data was analyzed for the cost estimation for the period of six months, for the following heads: 1) hospital cost per day, 2) ICU setup cost per day, and 3) salaries of hospital staff per day.Results: There were 53 cases of moderate injury and 17 cases of severe injury. Mean hospital stay was 14 days, minimum number of stay was 2 days and the maximum number of stay was 124 days in six months. Overall, in six months, per day cost of hospital bills head was Rs. 42,333/$ 263/€ 238. For the ICU setup head, the total cost was Rs. 17,9923/$1130/€ 1016 per day. The salary head’s total cost was Rs. 2573/$16.06/€ 14.44. The grand total of all heads, (bills, ICU setup & salaries) was Rs. 22,482,29/$1409/€ 1270.Conclusion: We evaluated the cost effectiveness of the Neurocritical care unit of a public sector hospital who provides the best possible health care facilities at a cheaper rate as compared to developed countries. We are highlighting the economic burden borne by the developing country’s government.