Abstract
Introduction: Access to the healthcare system when patients are vulnerable and living outside metropolitan areas can be challenging. Our objective was to explore healthcare system satisfaction of urban and rural inhabitants depending on financial and health vulnerabilities. Methods: Repeated cross-sectional data from 353,523 European citizens (2002–2016). Multivariable associations between rural areas, vulnerability factors and satisfaction with the healthcare system were assessed with linear mixed regressions and adjusted with sociodemographic and control factors. Results: In unadjusted analysis, the people who lived in houses in the countryside and those who lived in the suburbs were the most satisfied with the healthcare system. In the adjusted model, residents living in big cities had the highest satisfaction. Financial and health vulnerabilities were associated with less satisfaction with the healthcare system, with a different effect according to the area of residence: the presence of health vulnerability was more negatively correlated with the healthcare system satisfaction of big city inhabitants, whereas financial vulnerability was more negatively correlated with the satisfaction of those living in countryside homes. Conclusion: Vulnerable residents, depending on their area of residence, may require special attention to increase their satisfaction with the healthcare system.
Highlights
Access to the healthcare system when patients are vulnerable and living outside metropolitan areas can be challenging
Satisfaction with the healthcare system is generally moderate in western countries [9, 10] and is related to individual factors on the one hand and to macro factors on the other, with significant variations between countries [9–11]
The inhabitants of the big cities were slightly younger and more likely women than the others and they studied as much as the residents in the outskirts of a big city and more than the other groups. They were as satisfied with life as were residents in small cities and country villages but less than people living in the suburbs or outskirts of a big city and in a farm or home in the countryside
Summary
Access to the healthcare system when patients are vulnerable and living outside metropolitan areas can be challenging. Our objective was to explore healthcare system satisfaction of urban and rural inhabitants depending on financial and health vulnerabilities. Satisfaction with the healthcare system should be high regardless of place of residence of the patients, both for the general population and for its Healthcare Satisfaction in Urban-Rural Areas most vulnerable members. Satisfaction with the healthcare system is generally moderate in western countries [9, 10] and is related to individual factors on the one hand and to macro (country-level and health system-level) factors on the other, with significant variations between countries [9–11]. Being a woman [9, 10, 12], not having a comfortable income [10, 12–14], and having a poor self-reported health [9–13, 15] or a sadness-related personality trait [11] are individual factors associated with lower satisfaction with the healthcare system. Inconsistent associations have been observed for education, with lower [9, 11, 12, 16] and higher [10] educational achievement being associated with higher satisfaction
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
