As a very imperfect estimate we are forced to use the cost of providing home based palliative care to people with HIV/AIDS in South Africa as a proxy for the the cost effectiveness of hospice and palliative care in the developing world. This is the only data point we can find. In reality costs in the developing world will be cheaper than in South Africa, while hospice rather than home based care costs will presumably be greater.
In 2002, providing home based palliative care for 12 months cost R2,840 per HIV/AIDS patient (The cost of home-based terminal care for people with AIDS in South Africa). At the then prevailing exchange rate of 11.4 R/$ this is equivalent to $250.
Project | Cost | Real world outcome | Outcome estimates | Economic value in Western terms |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hospice and palliative care | $250/patient/year | prevent 1 year of extreme pain and suffering | value pain and suffering at our standard rate | $73k/patient/year |
300