Abstract: Background: The provision of timely access to health care for those in need is a key objective of global health systems and an important predictor of how health systems respond to demand. This makes the time people wait to access health care services a top priority on the policy agenda of many countries, especially in climes that offer universal access to health care for their citizens. Nigeria is also striving towards universal health care coverage for its citizens amidst a system with no formalized waiting time regimen. Therefore, excessively long waits at points of services utilization is particularly rife at all levels of the public health care. Several studies have explored waiting times in outpatient clinics and surgical settings, but none have examined the phenomenon using an economic lens. This study fills this gap by exploring surgical cancellation in the urology unit of Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Nigeria....
Key words: excessive waiting time, elective surgery, cancellation, policy, health system strengthening, Nigeria
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