Socioeconomic Determinants of Unmet Healthcare Needs in Iran

Abstract

Background: Unmet need is a critical indicator of access to healthcare services. Despite concrete evidence about unmet need in Iran’s health system, no recent evidence of this negative outcome is available. This study aimed to measure the subjective unmet need (SUN), the factors associated with it and various reasons behind it in Iran. Methods: We used the data of 13005 respondents over the age of 15 from the Iranian Utilization of Healthcare Services Survey in 2016. SUN was defined as citizens whose needs were not sought through formal healthcare services, while they did not show a history of self-medication. The reasons for SUN were categorized into availability, accessibility, responsibility and acceptability of the health system. The multivariate logistic regression was used to determine significant predictors of unmet need and associated major reasons. Results: About 17% of the respondents (N=2,217) had unmet need for outpatient services. Nearly 40% of the respondents chose only accessibility, 4% selected only availability, 78% chose only responsibility, and 13% selected only acceptability as the main reasons for their unmet need. Low education was associated with higher responsibility-related SUN, while it could also reduce acceptability-related SUN. While SUN and responsibility-related SUN were prevalent among lower economic quintiles and people with higher outpatient needs, having a complementary insurance was associated with decreased SUN and responsibility-related SUN. The elderly and those with basic insurance had lower chances to face with responsibility-related SUN, while employed individuals were at risk to experience SUN. Conclusion: It seems that Iran is still suffering from unmet need for outpatient services, most of which emerges from its health system performance. The majority of the unmet health needs could be addressed through improving financial as well as organizational policies. Special attention is needed to address the unmet need among individuals with poor health status. Keyword: Iran, Healthcare services, Access, Unmet need

Assessing unmet health-care needs of the elderly in west of Iran: A case study

“…In the Iranian Utilization of Health-care Services Survey in 2016, conducted on a population over the age of 15, unmet need for outpatient services was reported at 17% over the past two weeks. About 40% of people cited the lack of affordability as a reason for the unmet need for outpatient care (Vahedi et al, 2020).…”

“…We should note that giving a written consent to participate in the study and the appropriate mental strength of the elderly were the conditions for entering the study. We collected the required data through the Utilization Health Services questionnaire, which is a valid and reliable questionnaire designed by the National Institute of Health Research of Iran (Vahedi et al, 2020). The questionnaire comprises three sections.…”

Unmet Healthcare Needs of Elderly in Iran: A Case Study

“…In the Iranian Utilization of Healthcare Services Survey in 2016, conducted on a population over the age of 15, unmet need for outpatient services was reported at 17% over the past two weeks. About 40% of people cited the lack of affordability as a reason for unmet need for outpatient [12].…”

“…We should note that written consent to participate in the study and having the appropriate mental strength of the elderly were the conditions for entering the study. We collected the required information through the Utilization Health Services questionnaire, which is a valid and reliable questionnaire designed by the National Institute of Health Research of Iran [12]. The questionnaire comprises three sections.…”