FEATURING
- Edward Okeke, Senior Policy Researcher, RAND Corporation; Faculty Member, Pardee RAND Graduate School
DISCUSSANT
- David Evans, Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development
MODERATOR
- Amanda Glassman, Executive Vice President and Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development
ABOUT THE EVENT
Please join us for this seminar as Edward Okeke presents new research on the impact of easing physician labor supply constraints on mortality in Nigeria. In this policy experiment, conducted in coordination with the Nigerian government, physicians were randomly assigned to primary health service areas and posted to government health centers serving these areas. Prior to the arrival of the physicians, health care in the facility was provided entirely by mid-level health care providers. To separate skill from volume effects, another group of service areas were provided with an additional mid-level health worker.
This paper explores what expanding access to physicians means for quality of care, health outcomes, and the substitutability of physicians and non-physicians in health care production – and how this contributes to our understanding of the returns to human capital in health care delivery. What impact does the arrival of physicians have on mortality for newborns in Nigeria? What are the longer-term social and economic implications? And how can lessons from the Nigeria case be applied elsewhere? This event will highlight key findings of the study, examine the challenges and opportunities for implementation of physician programs, and reflect on the broader lessons for policymakers in low- and middle-income country settings.
If you have questions for our panelists, please submit them to events@cgdev.org, tweet @CGDev #CGDTalks, or submit your comments via YouTube.
