Medical ethics and compliance amongst physician groups: a self-assessed survey in a hospital in Southeast Nigeria.

Background: Being a doctor remains a moral enterprise as he is expected to make some medical decisions based on ethical principles during encounter with patients.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the knowledge and application of medical ethical principles amongst physician groups in a Hospital in Enugu, Nigeria.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional self-assessed study conducted amongst medical doctors in five specialty groups in a teaching hospital in Enugu, Nigeria.

Assessing the predictors for training in management amongst hospital managers and chief executive officers: a cross-sectional study of hospitals in Abuja, Nigeria.

Background: There is a compelling need for management training amongst hospital managers in Nigeria mostly because management was never a part of the curricula in medical schools and this has resulted in their deficiencies in effective policymaking, planning and bottom line management. There has been no study to the best of our knowledge on the need and likely factors that may influence the acquisition of such training by hospital managers and this in effect was the reason for this study.

Methods: Data for this study came from a cross-sectional survey distributed amongst management staff in twenty five (25) hospitals that were purposively selected.

Patients' willingness to pay for the treatment of tuberculosis in Nigeria: exploring own use and altruism.

Background: Although, current treatment services for Tuberculosis (TB) in Nigeria are provided free of charge in public facilities, the benefits (value) that patients attach to such service is not known. In addition, the prices that could be charged for treatment in case government and its partners withdraw from the provision of free services or inclusion of the services in health insurance plans are not known. Hence, there is a need to elicit the maximum amounts that patients are willing to pay for TB treatment services, both for themselves and for the very poor patients that may not be able to pay if some user fees are introduced (altruistic willingness to pay).

Patients' reaction to the ethical conduct of radiographers and staff services as predictors of radiological experience satisfaction: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Patients' satisfaction arises from their appraisal of experience in hospital services and measuring patients' satisfaction in hospital has become a global phenomenon. To improve on patients' satisfaction, radiographers have to imbibe the right ethical attitude in their conduct while discharging duties to patients during radiological examination. The objective of this study is to understand from the patients' perspective the ethical conduct of radiographers and radiology nurses that constitute factors in patient satisfaction during routine radiological examination.

Estimating the costs of psychiatric hospital services at a public health facility in Nigeria.

Background: Information on the cost of mental health services in Africa is very limited even though mental health disorders represent a significant public health concern, in terms of health and economic impact. Cost analysis is important for planning and for efficiency in the provision of hospital services.

Study Aim: The study estimated the total and unit costs of psychiatric hospital services to guide policy and psychiatric hospital management efficiency in Nigeria.

Investigating determinants of out-of-pocket spending and strategies for coping with payments for healthcare in southeast Nigeria.

Background: Out-of-pocket spending (OOPS) is the major payment strategy for healthcare in Nigeria. Hence, the paper assessed the determinants socio-economic status (SES) of OOPS and strategies for coping with payments for healthcare in urban, semi-urban and rural areas of southeast Nigeria. This paper provides information that would be required to improve financial accessibility and equity in financing within the public health care system.

Improving equity in malaria treatment: relationship of socio-economic status with health seeking as well as with perceptions of ease of using the services of different providers for the treatment of malaria in Nigeria.

Background: Equitable improvement of treatment-seeking for malaria will depend partly on how different socio-economic groups perceive the ease of accessing and utilizing malaria treatment services from different healthcare providers. Hence, it was important to investigate the link between socioeconomic status (SES) with differences in perceptions of ease of accessing and receiving treatment as well as with actual health seeking for treatment of malaria from different providers.

Methods: Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from 1,351 health providers in four malaria-endemic communities in Enugu state, southeast Nigeria.