Stroke imposes an important economic burden worldwide and acute in-patient care accounts for a large proportion of costs in the first year following stroke. Length of stay (LOS) is regarded as a key determinant of in-patient costs and the primary focus of this study is to examine associations...

In 2010, 46 per cent of Irish-born mothers were breastfeeding at hospital discharge, in comparison with 84 per cent of non-Irish-born mothers. Using data from the Irish National Perinatal Reporting System, we find that maternal country of birth is a large and highly significant predictor of...

: This paper explores levels and trends in the prevalence of Caesarean section delivery in Ireland between 1999 and 2007. Over this period the Caesarean section rate for singleton births in Ireland increased by over one quarter. Using data from the Irish National Perinatal Reporting System and...

In health care, there is extensive empirical evidence that the behaviour of both providers and users is affected by the financial incentives that they face. In this paper, we adopt a systemwide perspective and develop a conceptual framework to examine how current financial incentives in Irish...