Technical Efficiency of Maternity Units of Regional Referral Hospitals in Uganda

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to estimate technical and scale efficiency while
investigating determinants of technical efficiency in Uganda’s hospitals. A panel
of 14 maternity units in the regional referral hospitals for over the period 2012-
2016 is considered for empirical analysis. Nonparametric Data Envelopment
Analysis approach is used in measurement of hospital technical efficiency. The
results indicate existence of varying degrees of technical and scale efficiency in
the maternity units in the hospitals at the individual and regional levels.
Performance of the regional referral hospital’s maternity units demonstrated
existence of scale and management problems at different levels. Results further
depicted existence of increasing returns to scale. Previous studies focused on the
health sector in totality, however this paper only looks at efficiency in the
maternity units in regional referral hospitals. Results point to the need for
expansion in the size of the units through internal growth and improvement in
management. Secondly increasing funding to regional referral hospitals is
necessary for technical efficiency improvement to grantee reduction in maternal
and infant death and improvement in the maternal health management in
regional referral hospitals in Uganda.

Keywords: Data Envelopment Analysis, Technical Efficiency, Maternity Units.