Brazilian hospitals’ performance: an assessment of the unified health system (SUS)

Laura Botega (), Mônica Viegas Andrade () and Gilvan Ramalho Guedes ()
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Laura Botega: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)
Mônica Viegas Andrade: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)
Gilvan Ramalho Guedes: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)

Health Care Management Science, 2020, vol. 23, issue 3, No 10, 443-452

Abstract: Abstract This paper assesses the economic efficiency of Brazilian general hospitals that provide inpatient care for the Unified Health System (SUS). We combined data envelopment analysis (DEA) and spatial analysis to identify predominant clusters, measure hospital inefficiency and analyze the spatial pattern of inefficiency throughout the country. Our findings pointed to a high level of hospital inefficiency, mostly associated with small size and distributed across all Brazilian states. Many of these hospitals could increase production and reduce inputs to achieve higher efficiency standards. These findings suggest room for optimization, but inequalities in access and the matching of demand and supply must be carefully considered in any attempt to reorganize the hospital system in Brazil.

Keywords: Hospital services; Technical efficiency; Scale efficiency; Data envelopment analysis (DEA); Spatial analysis; Sustainable development goals (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10729-020-09505-5

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