Impact Of Health Insurance On Healthcare Access And Utilization For Children In Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia: Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Objective: To assess the impact of health insurance on access to and utilization of healthcare services, particularly timely health-seeking behavior for sick children, in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia over a defined study period (January 8, 2024, until October of 2024).

Material and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on parents and guardians who lived in the Eastern Province. Total 125 participants were recruited through a purposive sampling method. A structured online questionnaire was used to collect data on the topics of health insurance status, access to healthcare, affordability, quality of care, and patterns of use on the children. Participant characteristics and responses were summarized using descriptive statistics. Chi-square test was used to test the relationship between the health insurance status and healthcare utilization and satisfaction where the p-value of less than 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.

Results: Out of the respondents, 50.4% said that their children had not been covered by health insurance, and 45.6% insurance covered children. There were positive perceptions concerning the accessibility, affordability and quality of care with respect to healthcare. The statistical analysis showed that there was a strong relationship between health insurance cover and satisfaction with healthcare utilization (p<0.05). Lack of insurance and financial constraints were cited as significant factors to impeding access to timely healthcare with the uninsured children overwhelmingly being affected.

Conclusion: Health insurance can be important when it comes to facilitating accessibility of healthcare services and ensuring timely health-seeking behavior amongst children in Saudi Arabia. The policy measures required to tackle the healthcare disparities and enhancing the pediatric health outcomes are to expand insurance coverage and decrease financial barriers.