This is a review on the article titled Factors Affecting the Demand for Healthcare Services in the Philippines authored by Ching in 1992. Ching (1992) asserts that health care demand is an intricate subject because the various factors involved vary from person to person. Some of the predominantly noticeable factors predisposing populations to increased or decreased demand for health care services include socio-economic status (Johnson et al., 2006), physician supply, policies and beliefs of a nation (Niessen, Grijseels & Rutten, 2000), risk behaviors of a population, and finally, health status.
Some of the strengths of this article include a succinctly laid down purpose, that is, highlighting the factors that deter people from seeking health care services and, more importantly, formulate amicable solutions to this challenge. By proving this information, this study proves to be a strong contributor to the policy makers’ understanding of the intricate nature of factors affecting the demand for healthcare services. As such, this study is of great significance to the teams tasked with formulating strategies to enhance increased healthcare service utilization. Another source of strength in this article is that it bases its findings on primary data collected by use of questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The researcher recruited over 500 hundred study participants thereby making the study findings highly reliable. Additionally, the high numbers of participants make the findings valid with higher possibilities of being redone in other regions.
References
Johnson, K., Posner, S. F., Biermann, J., Cordero, J. F., Atrash, H. K., Parker, C. S., & Curtis, M. G. (2006). Recommendations to improve preconception health and health care—United States. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 55(4), 1-23.
Niessen, L. W., Grijseels, E. W., & Rutten, F. F. (2000). The evidence-based approach in health policy and health care delivery. Social Science & Medicine, 51(6), 859-869.
Ching, P. (1992). Factors affecting the demand for health services in the Philippines (No. WP 1992-06). Philippine Institute for Development Studies. http://dirp3.pids.gov.ph/ris/wp/pidswp9206.pdf
