Access to health services: Household Study in Palmira, Valle, Colombia 2017

Abstract

Introduction. Access to health services is one of the principal health policy concerns. In Valle del Cauca, local information on effective access from the perspective of the population is scarce. Objective. Analyze the behavior of access to health services in the Palmira, Valle del Cauca urban population in 2017. Method. Cross-sectional quantitative study, through a survey applied to a sample of 242 households; the sampling was probabilistic, stratified, multistage by conglomerates. Results. Emergencies and medical consultation show a high resolution of the demanded need and satisfaction, but low opportunity; continuity of care is affected by excessive paperwork, non- authorization of services, and non-delivery of medicine. For specialized consultation, the opportunity is low. Hospitalization reported better opportunity, high satisfaction and high resolution of needs. In preventive services, the lack of promotion of the services determines their scarce use; in several cases, the use is higher than the promotion. Discussion. The results of previous studies were corroborated. The importance of the administrative and structural barriers of the system is highlighted in order to understand the problem of access in Colombia. Conclusion. Despite the increase in the population’s insurance coverage, problems persist that prevent real access of the population to health services, related to opportunity, continuity, complementarity and out-of-pocket expenses; the scarce promotion of preventive services demonstrates the curative focus of the health attention model in Colombia.