"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda.
Snakebite envenomation (SBE) is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and generally over-represented in rural, remote, and impoverished agricultural communities. While poverty is an established risk factor, little research has been done to investigate the economic consequences of SBE. This cross-sectional,...
Published in: | PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2023
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 https://doaj.org/article/0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 |
id |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 2024-01-28T10:04:04+01:00 "I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. Janna M Schurer Mahlet Tadesse Admasu Mihigo Bonaventure Dieudonne Hakizimana Elijah Murara Lauren E MacDonald Ellen Rafferty 2023-11-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 https://doaj.org/article/0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 EN eng Public Library of Science (PLoS) https://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768&type=printable https://doaj.org/toc/1935-2727 https://doaj.org/toc/1935-2735 1935-2727 1935-2735 doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 https://doaj.org/article/0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Vol 17, Iss 11, p e0011768 (2023) Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine RC955-962 Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 2023-12-31T01:49:22Z Snakebite envenomation (SBE) is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and generally over-represented in rural, remote, and impoverished agricultural communities. While poverty is an established risk factor, little research has been done to investigate the economic consequences of SBE. This cross-sectional, quantitative study aimed to measure out-of-pocket spending and lost income when a household member was bitten by a snake. In 2020, 732 snakebite survivors from Eastern Province (Rwanda) agreed to complete a survey administered by telephone. The survey focused on participant demographics, income, direct medical and non-medical costs, care-seeking decisions, and lost work during convalescence. Our results suggested that patients incurred the highest mean expenses when they sought care from hospitals (11 307 RWF or 12 USD) or traditional healers (5 836 RWF or 6 USD) but that the highest maximum cost was incurred from traditional healers (300 000 RWF or 313 USD). Across all victims, the total amount paid to traditional healers (3.4 million RWF or 3 537 USD) was 4.7 times higher than all other care providers combined. On average, families lost 111 814 RWF (117 USD) per snakebite in direct treatment costs and indirect productivity losses. Many victims sought care from traditional healers despite being eligible for free medical care. Altogether, this study serves as a reminder of the serious physical and financial consequences associated with SBE and provides justification for new investments into SBE prevention and care. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 17 11 e0011768 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine RC955-962 Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 |
spellingShingle |
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine RC955-962 Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 Janna M Schurer Mahlet Tadesse Admasu Mihigo Bonaventure Dieudonne Hakizimana Elijah Murara Lauren E MacDonald Ellen Rafferty "I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
topic_facet |
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine RC955-962 Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 |
description |
Snakebite envenomation (SBE) is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and generally over-represented in rural, remote, and impoverished agricultural communities. While poverty is an established risk factor, little research has been done to investigate the economic consequences of SBE. This cross-sectional, quantitative study aimed to measure out-of-pocket spending and lost income when a household member was bitten by a snake. In 2020, 732 snakebite survivors from Eastern Province (Rwanda) agreed to complete a survey administered by telephone. The survey focused on participant demographics, income, direct medical and non-medical costs, care-seeking decisions, and lost work during convalescence. Our results suggested that patients incurred the highest mean expenses when they sought care from hospitals (11 307 RWF or 12 USD) or traditional healers (5 836 RWF or 6 USD) but that the highest maximum cost was incurred from traditional healers (300 000 RWF or 313 USD). Across all victims, the total amount paid to traditional healers (3.4 million RWF or 3 537 USD) was 4.7 times higher than all other care providers combined. On average, families lost 111 814 RWF (117 USD) per snakebite in direct treatment costs and indirect productivity losses. Many victims sought care from traditional healers despite being eligible for free medical care. Altogether, this study serves as a reminder of the serious physical and financial consequences associated with SBE and provides justification for new investments into SBE prevention and care. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Janna M Schurer Mahlet Tadesse Admasu Mihigo Bonaventure Dieudonne Hakizimana Elijah Murara Lauren E MacDonald Ellen Rafferty |
author_facet |
Janna M Schurer Mahlet Tadesse Admasu Mihigo Bonaventure Dieudonne Hakizimana Elijah Murara Lauren E MacDonald Ellen Rafferty |
author_sort |
Janna M Schurer |
title |
"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
title_short |
"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
title_full |
"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
title_fullStr |
"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
title_full_unstemmed |
"I sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": Care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in Eastern Province, Rwanda. |
title_sort |
"i sold my towel and shoes to pay the traditional healer": care-seeking costs and productivity losses among snakebite victims in eastern province, rwanda. |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 https://doaj.org/article/0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_source |
PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Vol 17, Iss 11, p e0011768 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768&type=printable https://doaj.org/toc/1935-2727 https://doaj.org/toc/1935-2735 1935-2727 1935-2735 doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 https://doaj.org/article/0d836d4677e54e3e9ba7378896cb16d9 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011768 |
container_title |
PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
container_volume |
17 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
e0011768 |
_version_ |
1789329656310136832 |