Abstract

Background: The common perception of the general population is that a visit to a hospital is an expensive issue and infectious diseases are the most common reason for the visit. Aims and
Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the economic burden of infectious diseases in patients admitted to the medicine department.
Materials and Methods: It was a prospective observational study conducted on patients admitted to medicine ward with any infectious conditions. The study period was for 3 months. The data were collected in specially designed case record forms. The following analysis was performed; the WHO core indicators, cost of drugs, cost of consultation, and cost of illness (COI) were determined.
Results: Out of 87 subjects considered for final analysis, 56% were male and 68 were from the urban locality. The respiratory system was most commonly involved, and lower respiratory tract infection emerged as the most common infectious disease with 28 cases. The average drug per prescription was 4.2. The average cost of drugs was Rs. 5867 out of which Rs. 2039 was the cost of antibiotic used. The average consultation charges were Rs. 2289. COI per patient was Rs. 8156. Conclusion: By determining the COI of infectious disease, which was Rs. 709,572 the value of prevention and treatment strategies can be measured. The cost of preventive strategy could be subtracted from this to yield the benefit of implementing the preventive strategy nationwide and on a personal level.