Health disparities based on neighbourhood and social conditions: Open Comparisons—an indicator-based comparative study in Sweden

Abstract

ObjectiveThe overarching goal of the Swedish public health policy is to create the right societal conditions for good and equitable health throughout the population and to reduce avoidable health inequalities within a generation. The objective of this article is to highlight the main findings of the Open Comparisons in Public Health (OCPH) 2019 study. Study designThe OCPH is a longitudinal indicator-based comparative study, encompassing 39 public health indicators with results from Sweden's 21 regions and 290 municipalities. MethodsDescriptive statistics and 95% confidence intervals were used to compare results between municipalities, regions and time points. Correlation analysis was used to study the strength of the relationship between the results of municipalities and their socio-economic conditions. ResultsAcross the population, levels of health are good and have, in some areas, improved over recent decades. However, some significant health disparities remain according to neighbourhood, sex, age and educational background. Health disparities related to the level of education are often larger than those between women and men, and there are larger differences within a region than between regions. Health disparities have, in some cases, increased, such as for life expectancy. ConclusionIf health equity is to be achieved, leaders at all levels must collaborate and advocate for political action and local efficient public health interventions to eliminate health disparities as a result of neighbourhood and social conditions.