

@mastersthesis {6496,
	title = {Economic evaluation of malaria control interventions in {Surat}, {India}. ({BL}: {DXN}057370)},
	year = {2000},
	note = {U154362},
	school = {University of London, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (United Kingdom)},
	type = {phdPh.{D}.},
	address = {Ann Arbor},
	abstract = {The objectives of this thesis are: (i) To assess the incremental cost-effectiveness ratios of the two interventions, treated mosquito nets and in-house residual spraying, and estimate the willingness to pay of the study population for the efficient intervention. (ii) To develop a methodology to undertake a willingness to pay study in a developing country context, including the assessment of post-test validity; (iii) To assess the policy implications of the research findings, the cost-effectiveness analysis and willingness to pay results, to the national Anti-Malaria Programme in India in terms of the pricing of treated mosquito nets. This thesis goes beyond identifying cost-effectiveness ratios, and attempts to explore household willingness to pay for the efficient intervention. It was observed that both treated mosquito nets (TMNs) and in-house residual spraying (IRS) are effective malaria control interventions. However, treated mosquito nets are more efficient than in-house residual spraying. The cost per case averted for treated mosquito nets was Rs. 1908 whereas it was Rs. 2749 in the case of in-house residual spraying. Similar conclusions were reached for a government-run TMN programme. Sensitivity analysis confirmed that the results were robust to important assumptions. Threshold analysis revealed that for IRS to be a more favourable intervention, its cost would need to reduce by 30\% or its effectiveness increase by 44\%. Willingness to pay studies are criticised for their hypothetical nature, and this study assessed the criterion validity by actually selling the treated mosquito nets at a fixed price. At the aggregate level, almost the same number of households bought nets as said they would buy. This study also provides evidence of starting point bias. The discussion explores the policy implications of the study findings in terms of pricing and subsidy. This thesis is an unusual example of an attempt to go beyond cost-effectiveness ratios, linking up the costs of providing an intervention with household willingness to pay. By achieving its objectives, this thesis has made a contribution in the field of economic evaluation in general, and assessing the validity of willingness to pay estimates in particular.},
	keywords = {0573:Public health, Bibliographies, BL: DXN057370, Health and environmental sciences, Psychology{\textendash}Abstracting, Public health, Statistics},
	url = {http://search.proquest.com/docview/301549086?accountid=14270},
	author = {Bhatia, M R}
}
