Limited access to healthcare has impacts on the type and quality of care provided to various populations. This problem affects individuals with both acute and chronic conditions. Healthcare providers should collaborate with patients, their families, and other external stakeholders to improve access to healthcare services. This paper evaluates the problem of limited access to healthcare and proposes solutions to the problem.
Limited access to healthcare occurs when individuals fail to access timely quality health services. Timely access to quality care is associated with better patient outcomes and safety. In this context, access to healthcare entails both healthcare facilities and providers. Limited access to healthcare worsens the prognosis of diseases, increases the risk of complications, and increases mortality and morbidity rates (Salami et al., 2020). This problem affects people from various sociodemographic backgrounds. However, it is prevalent among immigrants, ethnic minorities, and populations with low socio-economic status (Salami et al., 2020).
Various etiological factors are linked with limited access to healthcare. Firstly, high treatment costs limit access to quality healthcare services. Patients are forced to choose between basic needs such as food and costly healthcare services (Ayón et al., 2020; Fante-Coleman & Jackson-Best, 2020). When this happens, they are likely to forego healthcare services to cater to their basic needs. Notably, this is an issue of concern among the uninsured population forced to adopt the out-of-pocket payment method (USC.edu, n.d.). Secondly, lack of appropriate transportation limit access to timely and quality healthcare. Limited transportation can occur in the form of physical barriers and a poor public transport system (Fante-Coleman & Jackson-Best, 2020). Thirdly, inadequate public and patient education limits access to healthcare. The public should be educated about available community health services, healthcare sites, and available primary care services (USC.edu, n.d.). This increases the likelihood of accessing these healthcare services by the public. Fourthly, social determinants of health impact access to healthcare services. This entails aspects such as society and community factors and the environment. As aforementioned, immigrants, ethnic minorities, and populations with low socio-economic status are likely to have limited access to healthcare (Salami et al., 2020).
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