Læknablaðið - 15.10.2011, Blaðsíða 22

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ENGLISH SUMMARY
Postponement and cancellation of physician visits among lcelanders: Extent and explanations
Vilhjálmsson R
Objective: Equal access to health care is a central goal in socialized health systems like the one in lceland. Previous research in lceland indicates
considerable individual and group differences in access to health care. The study maps the distribution of postponement and cancellation of physician
care among lcelandic adults and considers a number of potential explanations.
Material and methods: The data come from a national postal health survey of lcelandic adults, age 18-75, who were randomly drawn from the National
Register. 1532 individuals responded to the survey yielding a 60% response rate.
Results: 22% of the respondents had postponed or cancelled a physician visit they thought they needed in the past 6 months. The study found
considerable variations in postponement rates. Postponement was positively related to younger age, full employment, financial difficulties, high out-of-
pocket health care costs, inflexible daily schedules (fixed roles), dissatisfaction with last physician visit, and the number of chronic medical conditions
experienced.
Conclusions: Postponement or cancellation of medical care is fairly common among lcelandic adults, although considerable individual and group
differences in postponement are observed. The results raise concerns, as equal access to care is a central goal of the lcelandic heaith care system. It is
incumbent upon health authorities to pursue effective ways to equalize access to medical care and prevent postponement and cancellation of needed
services.
Key words: cancellation of medical care, access to health care, health services utilization, group differences.
Correspondence: Rúnar Vilhjálmsson, runarv@hi.is
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