BACKGROUND Many countries are developing health financing mechanisms to pursue the goal of universal coverage. In China, a rural health insurance system entitled New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) is being developed since 2003. Although there is concern about whether the NCMS will influence the serious situation of inequity in health service utilization in rural China, there is only limited ...

BACKGROUND Regular utilization of dental services is key to the attainment of optimal oral health state, an integral component of general health and well being needed for effective productivity by working personnel. OBJECTIVE This study assessed the rate and pattern of dental service utilization among civil servants and their attitudes towards its regular use. METHODOLOGY A multi-stage samp...

OBJECTIVE Although obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is not a life-threatening disease, very few studies have compared differences in healthcare service utilization between patients with and those without OSA in an Asian population according to different age groups. This study attempted to investigate differences in healthcare service utilization between patients with and those without OSA in diffe...

OBJECTIVE To describe the previously unexamined association between admissions to hospital with chronic disease and changes in all-cause health service utilization over time. RESEARCH DESIGN A cohort study examining the population of Western Australia with hospitalizations for chronic disease from 2002 to 2010. A "rolling" clearance period is used to define "cardinal events," that is, a disea...

BACKGROUND Identifying relevant measures of women's reproductive health needs is critical to improve women's chances of service utilization. The study aims to systematically review and analyze the adequacy of outcome measures and determinants applied in previous studies for assessing women reproductive health needs across West Africa. METHODS Evidence on outcomes and determinants of unmet rep...

BACKGROUND There is scarce information available on oral health service utilization patterns and common oral hygiene practices among adult Nigerians. We conducted the 2010-2011 national oral health survey before the introduction of the national oral health policy to determine the prevalence of oral health service utilization, patterns of oral hygiene practices, and self reported oral health sta...

The purpose of this retrospective cohort study was to examine the impact of the type of health plan (capitated vs. fee for service [FFS]) on outcomes (medication adherence and health care service utilization) in type 2 diabetes Medicaid enrollees. Subjects were 8581 Medicaid enrollees with type 2 diabetes who newly started oral pharmacotherapy and were followed for 6 months before and 12 months...

BACKGROUND Most previous studies on healthcare service utilization in low-income countries have not used a multilevel study design to address the importance of community-level women's autonomy. We assessed whether women's autonomy, measured at both individual and community levels, is associated with maternal healthcare service utilization in Ethiopia. METHODS We analyzed data from the 2005 an...