The Relationship Between Employment Status and the Use of Outpatient Medical Services

Abstract

Objectives: This study investigated the difference in the use of medical services depending on the employment status ofworkers, including regular workers, irregular workers, self-employed workers and the unemployed, and analyzed the relationshipbetween employment status and the use of outpatient medical services.Methods: Data of 11,903 economically active people aged 20-24 among the 21,235 people registered in the 2009 KoreaHealth Panel were collected and analyzed through logistic regression analysis in order to explore the relationship betweenemployment status and the use of outpatient medical services.Results: 6 out of 10 people in the sample group (economically active population aged 20-64) used outpatient medicalservices. Part-time workers were less likely to use outpatient medical services than regular workers (OR=0.81). However,economically inactive people, such as house workers (OR=1.40), the early retired (OR=1.72) and the sick or injured (OR=3.07),were more likely to use outpatient medical services than regular workers.Conclusions: While part-time workers among irregular workers were less likely to use outpatient medical services than regularworkers, the sick or injured, the early retired and house workers who belong to the economically inactive population were morelikely to use outpatient medical services than regular workers.