2. Survey on the logic of recourse to care for the needy (1999-2000)

SURVEY ON THE LOGIC OF RECOURSE TO CARE FOR THE NEEDY (1999-2000)

ORGANIZATIONS IN CHARGE OF THE SURVEY

  • Irdes
  • Research financed in part by the Inserm (National Institute of Health and Medical Research).

SURVEY'S FOCUS

For each patient :

  • Socio-economic characteristics
  • Degree of poverty
  • Health insurance coverage
  • Life history
  • Administrative status (immigrants)
  • Medical history (past injuries)
  • Consumption of alcohol and tobacco
  • Morbidity (medical reason for seeking care, dental health status)
  • Attitude towards the various aspects of the health system
  • Type of recourse to care
  • Delays in seeking care (for ear, nose, and throat diseases, skin and dental problems)
  • Compliance with doctors' advice

PRINCIPAL CHARACTERISTICS 

Date of the sSurvey

November 1999 to May 2000

Scope of the survey

Adults who have consultations in health facilities which dispense free care (humanitarian associations, shelters, hospitals...)

Sampling frame

  • 590 questionnaires filled out in 80 facilities located in continental France and which offer free care to the needy. The questionnaire was comprised of two sections, one section of questions asked the patient upon arrival by a representative of the facility, and the other section was filled out by the physician during the consultation.
  • 32 patients were interviewed in eight centers where free care was administered (4 for each center). Each patient was asked questions about his life history, past and present health, views about health care and health in general.

Method

The 1996-1997 Irdes survey was revamped to take into account the situation today. Two sets of information on patients who receive care in free treatment centers were sought:

  • The closed questionnaire (filled out by a representative of the center and by the consulting physician) provided information on the patients' life history, types of morbidity, and recourse to care.
  • Qualitative interviews were conducted on site. Questions were asked about the individual's life story, in an effort to characterize and understand the roots of the poor's pattern of recourse to health care. The coding and analysis of this information was conducted in 2000 and the results should yield insight into the factors that affect the poor's choice of whether or not to seek care and how, and the affect of their personal history on these tendencies. To do this, we will compare their behavior to that of comparably aged but richer people.