The Economic Burden of Water Related Infections in the Bamenda Health District: The Case of Diarrhoea

Abstract

Diarrhoea remains a major public health concern of our times with bad drinking water and frequent poor disposal of human waste matter. Caused by a variety of conditions, it spans from diarrhoea which are of viral bacterial to sometimes metal intoxication. In Cameroon, it is one of the 10 major causes of illness. To assess the burden and lost income due to diarrhoea, the study quantified how much households in the Bamenda Health District (BHD), North West Region (NWR) of Cameroon are losing because of the incidence of diarrhoea related infections. A cluster sampling technique was used to select 8 Public Integrated Health Centres in 8 Health Areas, with an estimated population of about 189,730 people. Data for all reported diarrhoea cases for 2011 and 2012 was collected from the Health Centres. The Cost of Illness (CoI) methodology was used to quantify the direct and indirect cost of diarrhoea infections. It was estimated that about USD22, 361 and USD37, 198 was lost by households in general in 2011 and 2012 respectively. The economic burden over the two years was estimated at USD53, 602.3. If this amount were projected over 10 years it will imply that about USD260, 000 will be lost to the treatment of diarrhoea infections.