Technical efficiency of Kosovo public hospitals

Abstract

Aim: The goal of this paper is to evaluate the technical efficiency of Kosovo public hospitals and to propose ways to improve the situation.

Methods: An input-oriented Data Envelopment Analysis model with a constant return to scale was applied for a 3-year period from 2018 to 2020. Input variables of number of beds, number of specialists and how they are used to produce outputs of inpatient discharges and surgical operations, are examined.

Results: The analysis highlights the marked hospital technical inefficiencies. This study clearly points out the greater attention of public healthcare institutions toward production efficiency. Results illustrate that at least half of Kosovo Public Hospitals operate inefficiently compared to their counterparts. Inefficient, compared to efficient hospitals, on average utilize at least (depending on scenarios analysed) 30% more beds and specialists.

Conclusions: The resources available for public health services in Kosovo are the lowest in Europe and the challenge remains to secure financial resources and use them effectively. The study illustrates that most of Kosovo Public Hospitals run inefficiently. Productivity is low, efficiency needs to be improved, especially in terms of introducing modern treatment methods such as daycare. Based on this research, it seems advisable to decrease the number of beds while rationalizing the number of specialized physicians with respect to the special requirements of therapeutic and diagnostic processes in the individual hospitals.