Ideally health insurance aims to provide financial security, promote social inclusion, and ensure equitable access to quality healthcare services for all households. Community-based health insuranc...

Background: Universal health coverage (UHC) is crucial for public health, poverty eradication, and economic growth. However, 97% of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), particularly Africa and Asia, lack it, relying on out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure. National Health Insurance (NHI) guarantees equity and priorities aligned with medical needs, for which we aimed to determine the pooled willingness to pay (WTP) and its influencing factors from the available literature in Africa and Asia.Methods: Database searches were conducted on Scopus, HINARI, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Semantic Scholar from March 31 to April 4, 2023. The Joanna Briggs Institute’s (JBI’s) tools and the “preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement” were used to evaluate bias and frame the review, respectively. The data were analyzed using Stata 17. To assess heterogeneity, we conducted sensitivity and subgroup analyses, calculated the Luis Furuya-Kanamori (LFK) index, and used a random model to determine the effect estimates (proportions and odds ratios) with a p value less than 0.05 and a 95% CI.Results: Nineteen studies were included in the review. The pooled WTP on the continents was 66.0% (95% CI, 54.0–77.0%) before outlier studies were not excluded, but increased to 71.0% (95% CI, 68–75%) after excluding them. The factors influencing the WTP were categorized as socio-demographic factors, income and economic issues, information level and sources, illness and illness expenditure, health service factors, factors related to financing schemes, as well as social capital and solidarity. Age has been found to be consistently and negatively related to the WTP for NHI, while income level was an almost consistent positive predictor of it.Conclusion: The WTP for NHI was moderate, while it was slightly higher in Africa than Asia and was found to be affected by various factors, with age being reported to be consistently and negatively related to it, while an increase in income level was almost a positive determinant of it.

Background: Despite global efforts, progress in reducing maternal malnutrition falls short of international goals, which is the same for Ethiopia, provided that studying dietary knowledge, attitude, and practice and their determinants is crucial to developing and implementing effective interventions, which this review tried to investigate in an Ethiopian context.Methods: We searched on Scopus, HINARI, PubMed, and Google Scholar on January 3, 2024. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute’s (JBI’s) tools and the “preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement” to evaluate bias and frame the review, respectively. The data were analyzed using Stata 17. Certainty was assessed using sensitivity and subgroup analyses and the Luis Furuya-Kanamori (LFK) index. The random effects model was used to determine the effect estimates with a p value less than 0.05 and a 95% CI.Results: The pooled good dietary knowledge, favorable attitude, and good practice were 48.0% (95% CI: 39.0–57.0%), 47.0% (95% CI: 38.0–55.0%), and 34.0% (95% CI: 28.0–40.0%), respectively. Knowledge and attitude had bidirectional relationships and were affected by sociodemographic variables and gynecological issues. The dietary practice was influenced by urban residency (OR = 6.68, 95% CI: 2.49–10.87), food security (OR = 3.51, 95% CI: 1.02–5.99), knowledge (OR = 4.53, 95% CI: 3.22–5.74), nutrition information (OR = 3.07, 95% CI: 1.13–5.02), attitude (OR = 2.32, 95% CI: 1.34–3.30), family support (OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.43–2.85), perceived severity of malnutrition (OR = 2.07, 95% CI: 1.82–2.31), and positive perception of dietary benefit (OR = 2.19, 95% CI: 1.56–2.82).Conclusion: The good dietary practice was lower than the knowledge and the favorable attitude toward it. It was influenced by sociodemographic variables, income and wealth, knowledge and information, attitudes and intentions, gynecological and illness experiences, family support and decision-making, and expectations of nutrition outcomes and habits. Sociodemographic and gynecological issues were also found to influence both dietary knowledge and attitude, which were also found to have bidirectional relationships.Systematic review registration: PROSPERO identifier: CRD42023440688.

Background: Ethiopia aims to achieve universal healthcare using health insurance. To do so, it has been implementing community-based health insurance since 2011. However, the retention of members by the scheme has not yet been evaluated nationally. The systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the dropout rate and associated factors among the scheme’s beneficiaries in Ethiopia. Methods: On December 19, 2022, searches were conducted in Scopus, Hinari, PubMed, Semantic Scholar, and Google Scholar. Searches were also conducted on the general web and electronic repositories, including the Ethiopian Health Insurance Service, the International Institute for Primary Health Care-Ethiopia, and various higher education institutions. The Joanna Briggs Institute’s tools and the “preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses 2020 statement” were used to evaluate bias and frame the review, respectively. Data were analyzed using Stata 17 and RevMan 5. To assess heterogeneity, we conducted subgroup analysis and used a random model to calculate odds ratios with a p value less than 0.05 and a 95% CI. Results: In total, 14 articles were included in the qualitative synthesis, of which 12 were selected for the quantitative analysis. The pooled estimate revealed that the dropout rate of beneficiaries from the scheme was 34.0% (95% CI: 23-44%), provided that the renewal rate was 66.0%, and was found to be influenced by socio-demographic, health status, length of enrolment, knowledge, attitude, the scheme, and health service-related variables. The southern and Oromia regions reported the lowest and highest dropout rates, with 27.0% (95% CI: 24-29%) and 48.0% (95% CI: 18-78%), respectively. The dropout rates increased from 12.3% in 2012–2015 to 34.4% in 2020–2021. Conclusion: More than one-third of the scheme’s beneficiaries were found to have dropped out, and this has been found to increase over time, dictating that a community-based strategy and intervention, from the supply, insurer, and demand sides, seem indispensable in minimizing this huge dropout rate.

Background: The fundamental concept of community-based health insurance is to strengthen the healthcare financing system to access universal healthcare by reducing costly risk-coping strategies. The scheme’s sustainability and the quality of services provided by it are highly dependent on the satisfaction of its beneficiaries. Despite beneficiaries’ satisfaction being the key determinant for providing evidence for policy revision and decision-making, it has often been neglected. Therefore, the study investigated the community-based health insurance beneficiaries’ satisfaction and associated factors in Legambo district, North-East Ethiopia.Methods: The study was conducted in the Legambo district with a community-based cross-sectional study design from October to November 2019. The data were collected from 838 households that had been the beneficiaries of the scheme using multi-stage and systematic random sampling. Twelve trained data collectors were employed and gathered the data using a pre-tested, structured questionnaire. We ran descriptive, bivariate, and logistic regression analyses. A value of p less than 0.05 with a 95% CI was used in multivariate logistic regression to determine the association of variables with the beneficiaries’ satisfaction.Results: The overall satisfaction level of the beneficiaries of the scheme was 58.6% and was associated with the following factors: merchandize (AOR = 1.92, 95% CI = 1.02–3.63), living in rural areas (AOR = 1.52, 95% CI = 1.02–2.27), an early office opening time (AOR = 3.81, 95% CI = 2.04–7.10), a short time interval to use benefit packages (AOR = 4.85, 95% CI = 2.08–11.31), an inexpensive membership premium (AOR =10.58, 95% CI = 3.56–31.44), availability of laboratory services (AOR =2.95, 95% CI = 1.71–5.09), presence of referral services (AOR =1.93, 95% CI = 1.33–2.80), having immediate care at health facilities (AOR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.01–2.97) and non-compulsory enrolment (AOR = 6.31, 95% CI = 1.64–24.20).Conclusion: The beneficiaries’ satisfaction with the scheme was suboptimal and found to be determined by occupation, residence, laboratory and referral services, immediate care, office opening time, time interval to use benefit packages, premium amount, and situation of enrollment, most of which are service-related variables. Thus, to improve the satisfaction level, the stakeholders that should work hard seem to be the health insurance agency (the insurer) and the health facilities (the provider or supplier).

Background: Despite being the most effective treatment for advanced type 2 diabetes, the choice to start and maintain insulin therapy is based on a variety of criteria, including the patients' acceptance and willingness to adhere to it. The patients' beliefs and experiences, on the other hand, could not be revealed without a thorough exploration. Objectives: This study investigated the barriers and facilitators to insulin treatment from the perspectives of patients with type 2 diabetes following treatment at Dessie Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, North-East Ethiopia. Methods: A phenomenological study was conducted from July 2019 to January 2020. Twenty-four (11 males and 13 females) participants were recruited purposively. Data were collected through face-to-face in-depth interviews, lasted about 23 to 71 min, until theoretical saturation was reached, and then organized using QDA Miner Lite v2.0.9. The transcripts were thematically analyzed using narrative strategies and the themes that arose were discussed in detail. Results: The most common facilitator of insulin treatment was its relative effectiveness, which was followed by its convenience (fewer gastrointestinal side effects, small needle size and ease of use), the concept of it is life, faith in doctors' decisions, family support, and health insurance membership. The most common impediments, on the other hand, were market failures (expensiveness and supply shortages), followed by its properties and patients' circumstances. Conclusions: Market failures due to supply shortages and associated costs were identified to be the most significant barriers to insulin treatment, necessitating the availability of an effective pharmaceutical supply management strategy that targets on insulin supply and affordability. It is also strongly recommended that health insurance coverage be increased.