Determinants of utilisation rates of preventive health services: Evidence from Chile

Rotarou, Elena S. and Sakellariou, Dikaios ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2668-2834 2018. Determinants of utilisation rates of preventive health services: Evidence from Chile. BMC Public Health 18 , 839. 10.1186/s12889-018-5763-4

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Abstract

Background: Preventive health services play a vital role in population health. However, access to such services is not always equitably distributed. In this article, we examine the barriers affecting utilisation rates of preventive health services, using Chile as a case study. Methods: We performed secondary analysis on cross-sectional data of more than 200,000 Chilean adults, taken from the 2015 National Socioeconomic Characterisation Survey of the Government of Chile. We carried out logistic regressions to explore the relationship between the dependent variable use of preventive services and various demographic and socioeconomic variables. Results: The results of the logistic regressions show that women, the elderly, married people, inactive people, and people with average or good self-assessed health score had higher odds of using preventive health services. Women, for example, had 1.2 times (CI 95%: 1.11-1.21) higher odds of using preventive services than men On the other hand, people living in rural areas, single people, and people affiliated with the private health care provider had fewer odds of undertaking such exams. People living in rural areas, for example, had 1.1 times (CI 95%: .86-.95) fewer odds of undertaking preventive exams than people living in urban areas. Conclusions: The findings underline the necessity of better information campaigns on the availability and necessity of preventive health services, addressing health inequality in accessing health services, and tackling lifestyle-related health risks. This is particularly important in countries – such as Chile – that are characterised by high income inequality and low utilisation rates of preventive health services.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Healthcare Sciences
Subjects:	R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine
Publisher:	BioMed Central
ISSN:	1471-2458
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	22 June 2018
Date of Acceptance:	22 June 2018
Last Modified:	16 Nov 2024 19:15
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/112720

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