A guide to maternity costs-why smaller units have higher costs.
In a time of international health care austerity, the costs of running a maternity unit are under increasing scrutiny. Economy of scale is shown to be central in understanding why smaller units cost more to run than larger ones. Awareness of the role of economy of scale in maternity costs can be tra...
| Published in: | British Journal of Midwifery Vol. 21; no. 1; pp. 54 - 60 |
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| Format: | tables/charts Journal Article |
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Mark Allen Holdings Limited
Jan2013
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| Summary: | In a time of international health care austerity, the costs of running a maternity unit are under increasing scrutiny. Economy of scale is shown to be central in understanding why smaller units cost more to run than larger ones. Awareness of the role of economy of scale in maternity costs can be traced back to the 1930s. In England, the Department of Health (DH) has insisted for many years that economy of scale is not a key factor in the tariff of services by which hospitals are paid for various activities. However, economy of scale can be clearly seen in maternity costs in England and elsewhere and this has led to a situation where smaller units have been subject to unjustified cost pressures while larger units have reaped undeserved profits. The situation has been partly obscured by exceedingly poor costing of maternity services, a situation which the DH appeared to leave untouched. Midwives are urged to become involved in the costing process at their hospital and to lobby the DH to address this unsatisfactory situation. |
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