Sociodemographic and socioeconomic predictors of unmet healthcare needs of adolescents and young adults in Serbia: A part of the national research

Abstract

Introduction/Objective. Recognizing the reasons for the unmet health needs of adolescents and young adults is important for identifying the barriers in solving certain health problems, as well as for monitoring the availability, level of use and implementation of healthcare. The aim of this study was to establish the socio-demographic and socio-economic parameters associated with unmet healthcare needs of adolescents and young adults in Serbia. Methods. This cross-sectional study is a part of the 2019 Population Health Survey of Serbia, carried out by Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia in cooperation with the Dr. Milan Jovanovic Batut Institute of Public Health of Serbia and the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Serbia, on a stratified two-stage sample. The survey included 1519 respondents, aged 15?24 years. The instruments and methodology of the European Health Survey ? third wave (EHIS-wave 3) were used. Factors associated to unmet healthcare needs were examined using logistic regression and the ?2 test. Results. Unfulfilled health needs were present in 4.1% of respondents, and the dominant reasons were finances (44.4%) and long waiting times (34.9%), distance from health institutions was recorded in 1.6% of respondents, while 19.5% of respondents stated several reasons. Multivariate analysis revealed that significant parameters of unmet healthcare needs include age, region, marital, and employment status. Conclusion. The results of this research can give a new direction in creating strategies and defining preventive programs to reduce inequality in the health of adolescents and young adults improve the health of future young generations.