Health funding policies affect Chilean caesarean section rates

Recent research has shown that Chile has the highest rate of caesarean sections in Latin America (40% of all deliveries in 1997). Murray (p 1501) conducted a study to explore the link between private health insurance---which has been promoted in Chile since the 1980s---and this high rate. Key elements include the requirement by the private health insurers that an obstetrician, rather than a midwife, should be the primary care provider; the highly personalised nature of private care relationships; and the demanding peripatetic work schedules of many obstetricians who take on private work to increase their incomes.


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Relevant Article

Relation between private health insurance and high rates of caesarean section in Chile: qualitative and quantitative study
Susan F Murray
BMJ 2000 321: 1501-1505. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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