Essential national health research in developing countries: Health‐care financing and the quality of care

New research integrating expertise in financing and quality assurance is critical at times when resource constraints threaten to undermine the sustainability of effective healthcare services. Cost‐effectiveness is related to the quality of the health‐care intervention. In the economics literature, health‐care demand studies generally indicate that quality is an important determinant of utilization patterns, but do not clearly identify those components of quality most important to the patient. On the supply side, cost analyses have not closely examined cost‐quality tradeoffs, nor the net costs of quality. Policy makers must determine the affordability of cost‐recovery mechanisms, which include both increases in price and quality. Further research should identify those aspects of quality which will maximize effectiveness at the least cost, thus helping to promote the financial sustainability of the health service.