Browsing by Subject "Discrete choice experiment"

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    Open Access
    Incentives for non-physician health professionals to work in the rural and remote areas of Mozambique - a discrete choice experiment for eliciting job preferences
    (BioMed Central, 2015-04-26) Honda, Ayako; Vio, Ferruccio
    Background: Successfully motivating and retaining health workers is critical for the effective performance of health systems. In Mozambique, a shortage of health care professionals and low levels of staff motivation in rural and remote areas pose challenges to the provision of equitable health care delivery. This study provides quantitative information on the job preferences of non-physician health professionals in Mozambique, examining how different aspects of jobs are valued and how health professionals might respond to policy options that would post them to district hospitals in rural areas. Methods: The study used a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to elicit the job preferences of non-physician health professionals. Data collection took place in four Mozambique provinces: Maputo City, Maputo Province, Sofala and Nampula. DCE questionnaires were administered to 334 non-physician health professionals with specialized or university training (‘mid-level specialists’ and N1 and N2 categories). In addition, questionnaires were administered to 123 N1 and N2 students to enable comparison of the results for those with work experience with those without and determine how new N1 and N2 graduates can be attracted to rural posts. Results: The results indicate that the provision of basic government housing has the greatest impact on the probability of choosing a job at a public health facility, followed by the provision of formal education opportunities and the availability of equipment and medicine at a health facility. The sub-group analysis suggests that job preferences vary according to stage of life and that incentive packages should vary accordingly. Recruitment strategies to encourage non-clinical professionals to work in rural/remote areas should also consider birthplace, as those born in rural/remote areas are more willing to work remotely. Conclusion: The study was undertaken within an overarching project that aimed to develop incentive packages for non-physician health professionals assigned to work in remote/rural areas. Based on the DCE results, the project team, together with the Mozambique Ministry of Health, has developed a range of health workforce retention strategies focusing on the provision of housing benefits and professional development opportunities to be utilized when assigning non-physician health professionals to rural/remote areas.
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    Open Access
    Rural internship job preferences of final year medical students in South Africa: a discrete choice experiment
    (2019) Jose, Maria; Alaba, Olufunke
    To achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3 in developing countries, Good health and wellbeing for all, the health workforce is vital however the unpopularity of rural medical practice results in widening healthcare inequalities between urban and rural areas. This study determined the heterogeneity in valuations for rural facility attributes by final year medical students at one South African public university to inform cost-effective recruitment policy recommendations. Focus groups conducted identified facility attributes, a D-efficient design was generated with 15 choice sets, each with two rural hospital alternatives and no opt-out option. An online, unlabelled discrete choice experiment (DCE) was conducted, the results effects coded, and mixed logit models applied. The final sample size was 193 (86,16% of the class), majority female 130 (66.33%), with urban origins 176 (89.80%), unmarried 183 (93.37%) and without children 193 (98.47%). Most had undergraduate rural medicine exposure 110 (56.12%) and intended to specialise 109 (55.61%). The main-effects mixed logit found advanced practical experience, hospital safety, correctly fitted personal protective equipment (PPE) and availability of basic resources the highest weighted attributes with their mean utilities increasing by 0.82, 0.64, 0.62 and 0.52 respectively (p=0.000). In contrast, increases in rural allowance and the provision of housing provided smaller mean utility increases of 0.001 (p<0.01) and 0.09 (p<0.05) respectively. The interaction terms; female, general practise and prior rural medicine exposure, were associated with higher weighting for hospital safety, mean utility increases 1.59, 1.82, 1.42 respectively (p=0.000). Participants were willing to pay ZAR 2636.45 monthly (95%CI: 1398.55;3874.355) to gain advanced practical experience (equivalent to 65.91% of current rural allowance). Medical students’ facility preferences have been found to be influenced by their gender, career aspirations and prior experienced with rural medicine. The policy recommendations derived from this research include publicising rural health facility “draw-cards” among medical graduates, such as the opportunity to gain practical experience, improving the physical and occupational safety at rural health facilities and providing greater transparency about rural facility attributes to medical graduates.