Economic dimensions of health care

 The Economic dimensions of health care includes its Demand and Supply.

                                            DEMAND FOR HEALTH CARE

  The demand for healthcare is a derived demand from the demand for health. Healthcare is demanded as a means for consumers to achieve a larger stock of "Health Capital". The Demand for health is unlike most other goods because individuals allocate resources in order to both consume and produce health.

Demand for health care can be viewed from two angles viz.

a) The time devoted to preventive and curative measures of health care and

b) The cost of establishing the health-care services which depend upon the infrastructural needs.


In the light of this, demand for health care, like in education, acquires connotation both as a CONSUMER GOOD as well as an INVESTMENT GOOD.

It is a CONSUMER GOOD because its consumption makes the consumer feel more able and better.

It is an INVESTMENT GOOD because it helps in acquiring a state of health decreasing the number of sick days thereby increasing the quality of life.

#FACTORS INFLUENCING DEMAND

1) Age

2) Income level

3) Education


                                                SUPPLY OF HEALTH CARE

Supply is a fundamental concept in Economics that describes the total number of a specific good or service available to consumers. Healthcare is different from other services because it is not clearly defined. 

Measures of supply of health care indicate the amount of care that can be made available. It includes:- 

1) Staffing, consultants, total doctors, total nurses, managers

2) Beds available

3) Equipments

4) Budget, surplus, debt , funds available for investment, other sources of income.


#FACTORS INFLUENCING SUPPLY

1) Technological change

2) Government Budget



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Costs of Education

 Cost of Education is the cost incurred by the Government and the household sector on education. It is further divided into two parts:- Private cost and Social cost (1) PRIVATE COST:- Private cost is incurred either by the individual, or parents or both. It is further divided into:- Direct Private Cost and Indirect Private Cost. Direct Private Cost is the expenditure incurred directly by the household for the education of individual. It is the expenditure on schooling borne by the household. Besides expenses on fees, books, stationary and equipment, boarding and lodging payments, conveyance, transport and entertainment those on private tuition and coaching as well as pre-admission expenses are also included. Indirect Private Cost measures the opportunity cost of earnings foregone by the student because of joining an educational course. It is also termed as Hidden Cost. It values the time that student has allocated to studies. It quantifies the value of leisure foregone in pecuniary...
Read more

Economics of Health

 Health is the holistic process related to the overall growth and development of the nation. Public health refers to the health status of all people of a country. HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE It includes:- 1) Hospitals 2) Doctors 3) Nurses 4) paramedical professionals 5) Beds, equipments The health infrastructure should be accesssible to all the people. THREE-TIER HEALTH SYSTEM 1) Primary Health care:- It includes     a) Education concerning prevailing health problem and methods of identifying, preventing and                          controlling them.     b) Proper nutrition and adequate supply of water and basic sanitation.     c) Maternal and child-care     d) Immunition against major contagious diseases     e) Promotion of mental health     f) Provision of essential drugs     g) Setting up of Primary health centres, community health centres in...
Read more

Demand and Supply for Education

DEMAND FOR EDUCATION Educational needs and aspirations of a population measured in monetary terms constitute demand. Demand is also associated with the capacity to pay for the expected services. A person willing to pay for a good or service is said to make an 'EFFECTIVE DEMAND'. The demand for education is further divided into:- 1) PRIVATE DEMAND:- If the educational needs and aspirations are felt, experienced and expressed by parents, their wards or consumers in general, then it is known as Private Demand. # DETERMINANTS A) Gender B) Regional Disparity C) Linkages with Employment D) Unemployment Rate E) Waiting time for employment F) Non- Monetary Benefits G) Ability to Pay 2) SOCIAL DEMAND:- If the educational needs and aspirations of a population measured in monetary terms are felt, experienced and expressed by a state, or an organised establishment of society, then it is known as Social Demand. #DETERMINANTS A) Equity B) Economies of Scale C) Externalities D) Excellence SUP...
Read more