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Breaking Barriers to Healthcare Access: A Multilevel Analysis of Individual- and Community-Level Factors Affecting Women's Access to Healthcare Services in Benin.

ABSTRACT: Background: In low-income countries such as Benin, most people have poor access to healthcare services. There is scarcity of evidence about barriers to accessing healthcare services in Benin. Therefore, we examined the magnitude of the problem of access to healthcare services and its associated factors. Methods: We utilized data from the 2017-2018 Benin Demographic and Health Survey (n = 15,928). We examined the associations between the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of women using multilevel logistic regression. The outcome variable for the study was problem of access to healthcare service. Adjusted odds ratios (AORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were estimated. Results: Overall, 60.4% of surveyed women had problems in accessing healthcare services. Partner's education (AOR = 0.70; 95% CI; 0.55-0.89), economic status (AOR = 0.59; 95% CI; 0.47-0.73), marital status (AOR = 0.44; 95% CI; 0.39-0.51), and parity (AOR = 1.85; 95% CI; 1.45-2.35) were significant individual-level factors associated with problem of access to healthcare. Region (AOR = 5.24; 95% CI; 3.18-8.64) and community literacy level (AOR = 0.69; 95% CI; 0.51-0.94) were the main community-level risk factors. Conclusions: Enhancing husband education through adult education programs, economic empowerment of women, enhancing national education coverage, and providing priority for unmarried and multipara women need to be considered. Additionally, there is the need to ensure equity-based access to healthcare services across regions.

SUBMITTER: Zegeye B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7830614 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Breaking Barriers to Healthcare Access: A Multilevel Analysis of Individual- and Community-Level Factors Affecting Women's Access to Healthcare Services in Benin.

Zegeye Betregiorgis B El-Khatib Ziad Z Ameyaw Edward Kwabena EK Seidu Abdul-Aziz AA Ahinkorah Bright Opoku BO Keetile Mpho M Yaya Sanni S

International journal of environmental research and public health 20210117 2

<i>Background:</i> In low-income countries such as Benin, most people have poor access to healthcare services. There is scarcity of evidence about barriers to accessing healthcare services in Benin. Therefore, we examined the magnitude of the problem of access to healthcare services and its associated factors. <i>Methods:</i> We utilized data from the 2017-2018 Benin Demographic and Health Survey (n = 15,928). We examined the associations between the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics ...[more]

PMID: 33477290

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Malaysia is widely credited to have achieved universal health coverage for citizens. However, the accessibility of healthcare services to migrant workers is questionable. Recently, medical fees for foreigners at public facilities were substantially increased. Mandatory health insurance only covers public hospital admissions and excludes undocumented migrants. This study explores barriers to healthcare access faced by documented and undocumented migrant workers in Malaysia. METHODS:We use qualitative data from 17 in-depth interviews conducted with key informants from civil society organisations, trade unions, academia, medical professionals, as well as migrant workers and their representatives. We interviewed doctors working in public hospitals and private clinics frequented by migrants. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS:We found that healthcare services in Malaysia are often inaccessible to migrant workers. Complex access barriers were identified, many beyond the control of the health sector. Major themes include affordability and financial constraints, the need for legal documents like valid passports and work permits, language barriers, discrimination and xenophobia, physical inaccessibility and employer-related barriers. Our study suggests that government mandated insurance for migrant workers is insufficient in view of the recent increase in medical fees. The perceived close working relationship between the ministries of health and immigration effectively excludes undocumented migrants from access to public healthcare facilities. Language barriers may affect the quality of care received by migrant workers, by inadvertently resulting in medical errors, while preventing them from giving truly informed consent. CONCLUSIONS:We propose instituting migrant-friendly health services at public facilities. We also suggest implementing a comprehensive health insurance to enable healthcare access and financial risk protection for all migrant workers. Non-health sector solutions include the formation of a multi-stakeholder migration management body towards a comprehensive national policy on labour migration which includes health.

Project description:BackgroundBarriers to healthcare access for women have a substantial influence on maternal and child health. By removing barriers to accessing healthcare, several sustainable development goals can be achieved. The goal of this study, based on the dominance analysis, was to examine how living standards and spousal education play role in removing barriers to healthcare access for women in Bangladesh.MethodsThe study used the nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS), 2017-18 data. A binary logistic regression model was applied for analyzing different types of health access barriers in the study. Additionally, a dominance analysis was conducted to identify the most responsible factors for removing barriers.ResultsIn Bangladesh, 66% of women faced at least one barrier in accessing healthcare. The results obtained from logistic regression and dominance analysis revealed that women's standard of living and spousal education explained the highest variation of having at least one barrier in accessing healthcare. Specifically, a high standard of living explained 24% of the total explained variation (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.52-0.62), while both spousal education accounted for 27% (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.45-0.54) of the total explained variation. The regression results also showed that women with higher standards of living as well as educated women having educated partners had lower odds of facing barriers in getting permission (OR 0.87, 95% CI 0.76-1.00 and OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.58-0.75) to go for advice/treatment, obtaining money (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.39-0.47 and OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.34-0.40), distance to a health facility (OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.55-0.66 and OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.65-0.76), and not wanting to go alone (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.66-0.89 and OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.69-0.81) for getting medical advice/treatment.ConclusionThe findings of the study suggest paying extra attention to the spousal education and living standard of women to strengthen and reform the existing strategies and develop beneficial interventions to enhance unhindered accessibility to healthcare facilities for women.

Project description:Background Women’s health remains a global public health concern, as enshrined in the Sustainable Development Goals. This study, therefore, sought to assess the individual and contextual factors associated with barriers to accessing healthcare among women in Ghana. Methods The study was conducted among 9370 women aged 15–49, using data from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. Barrier to healthcare, derived from four questions— whether a woman faced problems in getting money, distance, companionship, and permission to see a doctor—was the outcome variable. Descriptive and multilevel logistic regression analyses were carried out. The fixed effect results of the multilevel logistic regression analyses were reported using adjusted odds ratios at a 95% confidence interval. Results More than half (51%) of the women reported to have at least one form of barrier to accessing healthcare. Women aged 45–49 (AOR?=?0.65, CI: 0.49–0.86), married women (AOR?=?0.71, CI:0.58–0.87), those with a higher level of education (AOR?=?0.51, CI: 0.37–0.69), those engaged in clerical or sales occupation (AOR?=?0.855, CI: 0.74–0.99), and those who were covered by health insurance (AOR?=?0.59, CI: 0.53–0.66) had lower odds of facing barriers in accessing healthcare. Similarly, those who listened to radio at least once in a week (AOR =0.77, CI: 0.66–0.90), those who watched television at least once a week (AOR?=?0.75, CI: 0.64–0.87), and women in the richest wealth quintile (AOR?=?0.47, CI: 0.35–0.63) had lower odds of facing barriers in accessing healthcare. However, women who were widowed (AOR?=?1.47, CI: 1.03–2.10), those in the Volta Region (AOR 2.20, CI: I.38–3.53), and those in the Upper West Region (AOR =2.22, CI: 1.32–3.74) had the highest odds of facing barriers to healthcare accessibility. Conclusion This study shows that individual and contextual factors are significant in predicting barriers in healthcare access in Ghana. The factors identified include age, marital status, employment, health insurance coverage, frequency of listening to radio, frequency of watching television, wealth status, and region of residence. These findings highlight the need to pay critical attention to these factors in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals 3.1, 3.7, and 3.8. It is equally important to strengthen existing strategies to mitigate barriers to accessing healthcare among women in Ghana. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-020-10017-8.

Project description:The study identifies provision of primary healthcare services using the capitated health model as a prerequisite for promoting positive healthcare outcomes for a country's population. However, capitated members have continued to face challenges in accessing primary healthcare services despite enrolment in the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). This study sought to determine if variables such as patient knowledge of the NHIF benefit package, NHIF Premium Payment processes, selecting NHIF capitated health facilities, and NHIF Communication to citizens' influences access to primary healthcare services. A cross-sectional analytical research design was adopted. Data was collected from patients who were using NHIF cards, who were drawn from health facilities. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire where some of the questions were rated using the Likert scale to enable the generation of descriptive statistics. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Logistic regression was conducted to determine the relationship between the independent and the dependent variables. The study found that four independent variables (Patient knowledge of NHIF Benefit Package, NHIF Premium Payment processes, Selecting NHIF capitated Health Facility, and NHIF Communication to citizens) were significant predictors of access to capitated healthcare services with significance values of .001, .001, .001 and .001 respectively at 95% significance level. The study found that familiarity with the NHIF benefit package significantly influenced NHIF capitated members' access to primary healthcare services in Uasin Gishu County. While most members were aware of their healthcare entitlements, there's a need for increased awareness regarding access to surgical services and dependents' inclusion. Facility selection also played a crucial role, influenced by factors like freedom of choice, NHIF facility selection rules, facility appearance, and proximity to members' homes. NHIF communication positively impacted access, with effective communication channels aiding service accessibility. Premium payment processes also significantly linked with service access, influenced by factors such as payment procedures, premium awareness, payment schedules, registration waiting periods, and penalties for defaults. Overall, patient knowledge, NHIF communication, premium payment processes, and facility selection all contributed positively to NHIF capitated members' access to primary healthcare services in Uasin Gishu County.

Project description:Discrimination based on ethnicity and the lack of translation services in healthcare have been identified as main barriers to healthcare access. However, the actual experiences of migrant patients in Europe are rarely present in the literature. The aim of this study was to assess healthcare discrimination as perceived by migrants themselves and the availability of translation services in the healthcare systems of Europe. A total of 1407 migrants in 10 European Union countries (consortium members of the Mig-HealthCare project) were surveyed concerning healthcare discrimination, access to healthcare services, and need of translation services using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Migrants in three countries were excluded from the analysis, due to small sample size, and the new sample consisted of N = 1294 migrants. Descriptive statistics and multivariable regression analyses were conducted to investigate the risk factors on perceived healthcare discrimination for migrants and refugees in the EU. Mean age was 32 (±11) years and 816 (63.26%) participants were males. The majority came from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, and Iran. Older migrants reported better treatment experience. Migrants in Italy (0.191; 95% CI [0.029, 0.352]) and Austria (0.167; 95% CI [0.012, 0.323]) scored higher in the Discrimination Scale to Medical Settings (DMS) compared with Spain. Additionally, migrants with better mental health scored lower in the DMS scale (0.994; 95% CI [0.993, 0.996]), while those with no legal permission in Greece tended to perceive more healthcare discrimination compared with migrants with some kind of permission (1.384; 95% CI [1.189, 1.611]), as opposed to Austria (0.763; 95% CI [0.632, 0.922]). Female migrants had higher odds of needing healthcare assistance but not being able to access them compared with males (1.613; 95% CI [1.183, 2.199]). Finally, migrants with chronic problems had the highest odds of needing and not having access to healthcare services compared with migrants who had other health problems (3.292; 95% CI [1.585, 6.837]). Development of culturally sensitive and linguistically diverse healthcare services should be one of the main aims of relevant health policies and strategies at the European level in order to respond to the unmet needs of the migrant population.

Dataset Information

Breaking Barriers to Healthcare Access: A Multilevel Analysis of Individual- and Community-Level Factors Affecting Women's Access to Healthcare Services in Benin.

Publications

Breaking Barriers to Healthcare Access: A Multilevel Analysis of Individual- and Community-Level Factors Affecting Women's Access to Healthcare Services in Benin.

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