ArticleBMC health services research2015
Costs of postabortion care in public sector health facilities in Malawi: a cross-sectional survey.
Article in BMC health services research, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 35 citations in OpenAlex.
- The cost of post-abortion care (PAC): a systematic review.BMC health services research · 2022Pooled it
- Exploring adolescent girls and young women's lived experiences of post abortion care at Thyolo district Hospital, Malawi.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Rethinking abortion law reform in Malawi: a multi-method study.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2025Article
- Direct and opportunity costs of comprehensive abortion care for women living in humanitarian settings in the Amhara Region, Ethiopia.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Midwives' perspectives on preventing unsafe abortion: a qualitative study.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Women's perceptions of and experiences with the use of misoprostol for treatment of incomplete abortion in central Malawi: a mixed methods study.Reproductive health · 2023Article
- Article
- Health care providers' perceptions of using misoprostol in the treatment of incomplete abortion in Malawi.BMC health services research · 2022Article
- Experiences of Using Misoprostol in the Management of Incomplete Abortions: A Voice of Healthcare Workers in Central Malawi.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- The burden of surgical complications from unsafe abortion treated at the John F. Kennedy Maternity Center (JFKMC), Monrovia, Liberia.Malawi medical journal : the journal of Medical Association of Malawi · 2022Article
- The macroeconomics of abortion: A scoping review and analysis of the costs and outcomes.PloS one · 2021Article
- Adolescent sexual and reproductive health and universal health coverage: a comparative policy and legal analysis of Ethiopia, Malawi and Zambia.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2020Article
- Patient and health system costs of managing pregnancy and birth-related complications in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review.Health economics review · 2020Review
- The Economic Burden of Abortion and Its Complication Treatment Cares: A Systematic Review.Journal of family & reproductive health · 2020Review
- The mesoeconomics of abortion: A scoping review and analysis of the economic effects of abortion on health systems.PloS one · 2020Article
- Mandatory pre-abortion counseling is a barrier to accessing safe abortion services.The Pan African medical journal · 2020Article
- The Unit and Scale-Up Cost of Postabortion Care in Tanzania.Global health, science and practice · 2019Article
- "Confidence comes with frequent practice": health professionals' perceptions of using manual vacuum aspiration after a training program.Reproductive health · 2019Article
- The Use of Manual Vacuum Aspiration in the Treatment of Incomplete Abortions: A Descriptive Study from Three Public Hospitals in Malawi.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2018Article
- Policy, law and post-abortion care services in Kenya.PloS one · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHealth systems could obtain substantial cost savings by providing safe abortion care rather than providing expensive treatment for complications of unsafely performed abortions. This study estimates current health system costs of treating unsafe abortion complications and compares these findings with newly-projected costs for providing safe abortion in Malawi.
methodsWe conducted in-depth surveys of medications, supplies, and time spent by clinical personnel dedicated to postabortion care (PAC) for three treatment categories (simple, severe non-surgical, and severe surgical complications) and three uterine evacuation (UE) procedure types (manual vacuum aspiration (MVA), dilation and curettage (D&C) and misoprostol-alone) at 15 purposively-selected public health facilities. Per-case treatment costs were calculated and applied to national, annual PAC caseload data.
resultsThe median cost per D&C case ($63) was 29% higher than MVA treatment ($49). Costs to treat severe non-surgical complications ($63) were almost five times higher than those of a simple PAC case ($13). Severe surgical complications were especially costly to treat at $128. PAC treatment in public facilities cost an estimated $314,000 annually. Transition to safe, legal abortion would yield an estimated cost reduction of 20%-30%.
conclusionsThe method of UE and severity of complications have a large impact on overall costs. With a liberalized abortion law and implementation of induced abortion services with WHO-recommended UE methods, current PAC costs to the health system could markedly decrease.
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