Methodological Evaluation of South African Community Health Centre Systems: A Meta-Analysis on Cost-Effectiveness

Community health centres in South Africa are crucial for providing essential healthcare services to underserved populations. However, their cost-effectiveness has not been systematically evaluated. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted using data from randomized field trials. Studies were included based on predefined criteria, and statistical models were used to aggregate results. The analysis revealed that while some centres showed significant cost savings compared to traditional healthcare settings, the variability in costs across regions necessitated further investigation. Despite initial positive findings, the heterogeneity in data suggests a need for more localized and context-specific evaluations of community health centre systems. Future research should focus on developing standardised protocols and conducting detailed cost-benefit analyses to enhance the effectiveness and sustainability of these centres. Treatment effect was estimated with $\text{logit}(p_i)=\beta_0+\beta^\top X_i$, and uncertainty reported using confidence-interval based inference.