Costs in the public sector: The cost of absenteeism in basic health units

ABSTRACT

The optimization of public resources is a recurring theme in scientific research. For this optimization, it is first necessary to know how much each process costs. Knowing the costs also implies knowing the waste. In the health area, absenteeism has been a recurring concern, as it causes unnecessary expenses to public coffers and is responsible, in some cases, for the aggravation of diseases due to lack of early diagnosis and the increase in waiting lines for care. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the costs generated by patients’ non-attendance at scheduled appointments at the basic health units of the municipality of Esteio, located in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, in 2022. The costs involved in the process, the number of consultations offered by the municipality, and the number of absences in consultations in the year 2022 were surveyed. It was observed that absenteeism in more than 49 thousand consultations generated a cost of more than BRL 5 million. The study assists managers in decision-making and contributes to raising awareness in society of the need to be careful with public resources.

Keywords:
health costs; absenteeism; basic care; public management; public health