No abstract

No abstract

Although access to health care is frequently identified as a goal for health care policy, the precise meaning of access to health care often remains unclear. We present a conceptual framework that defines access to health care as the empowerment of an individual to use health care and as a multidimensional concept based on the interaction (or degree of fit) between health care systems and individuals, households, and communities. Three dimensions of access are identified: availability, affordability, and acceptability, through which access can be evaluated directly instead of focusing on utilisation of care as a proxy for access. We present the case for the comprehensive evaluation of health care systems as well as the dimensions of access, and the factors underlying each dimension. Such systemic analyses can inform policy-makers about the 'fit' between needs for health care and receipt of care, and provide the basis for developing policies that promote improvements in the empowerment to use care.

Achieving equitable universal health coverage requires the provision of accessible, necessary services for the entire population without imposing an unaffordable burden on individuals or households. In South Africa, little is known about access barriers to health care for the general population. We explore affordability, availability, and acceptability of services through a nationally representative household survey (n = 4668), covering utilization, health status, reasons for delaying care, perceptions and experiences of services, and health-care expenditure. Socio-economic status, race, insurance status, and urban-rural location were associated with access to care, with black Africans, poor, uninsured and rural respondents, experiencing greatest barriers. Understanding access barriers from the user perspective is important for expanding health-care coverage, both in South Africa and in other low- and middle-income countries.

Background