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Mbada C.1, Oluwatobi S.1, Fatoye F.2
1Obafemi Awolowo University, Department of Medical Rehabilitation, Ile Ife, Nigeria, 2Manchester Metropolitan University, Health Professions, Manchester, United Kingdom
Background: High costs are recognized to be one of the barriers to utilization of physiotherapy services. Willingness to pay (WTP), a way of measuring health benefit in monetary terms is often used in healthcare for price setting. Hence, WTP studies help to identify the true demand for healthcare programmes by actively involving the patients in deciding if they want and can afford the treatment, and also if it satisfies their perceptions towards meeting their needs.
Purpose: This study examined WTP for physiotherapy services and explored the determinants of WTP in terms of socio-demographic factors, satisfaction with treatment and Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL).
Methods: One hundred patients receiving physiotherapy treatments as outpatients in the South-Western region of Nigeria participated in the study. A WTP questionnaire was used in this study. Short Form-12 and Physiotherapy Satisfaction Questionnaire were also used to examine HRQoL and satisfaction with physiotherapy, respectively. A proforma was used to obtain socio-demographic information. Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentages) were used to summarize the data. Chi-Square was used to examine the association between WTP and socio-demographic factors, HRQoL and patient satisfaction with physiotherapy. Significant level was set at p ≤0.05.
Results: Most of the respondents were in the 51-60 years age category (28.0%) and in low Socio-Economic Status (SES) (48.0%). A 45% no-WTP rate was found in this study. Pattern and determinants of WTP for different physiotherapy modalities and techniques were varied. Respondents who were willing to pay part were mostly those receiving treatments with electrical simulation modalities (41.3%), those in the 51 60 years age group (36.4%), as well as those of middle SES (40.0%). There were significant associations between WTP for exercise therapy and SES (p = 0.032); WTP for cryotherapy and each of SES (p = 0.015) and marital status (p = 0.023); WTP for heating modalities and religion (p = 0.054); and WTP for exercise therapy and each of SES (p = 0.032) and age (p = 0.035). There was no significant association between WTP and satisfaction with physiotherapy level (all p > 0.05). There was no significant association between WTP and health-related physical and mental health (all p > 0.05).
Conclusion(s): Fifty five percent of Nigerian patients were willing to pay for physiotherapy services. The least and highest WTP was observed for heating modalities and electrical stimulation, respectively. No-WTP was mostly influenced by low socio-economic status. Level of satisfaction with physiotherapy and health-related quality of life were not associated with WTP.
Implications: The findings of this study may help clinicians and decision makers to determine patients preference for, and choice of physiotherapy interventions appropriate for their conditions. In addition, they may help policy makers to determine patients affordability for physiotherapy services.
Funding acknowledgements: No funding was received in relation to this work
Topic: Globalisation: health systems, policies & strategies
Ethics approval: Ethical approval was obtained from the Research and Ethics Committee, Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. Consent was obtained from the participants.
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
