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Health care prioritization in ageing societies: Influence of age, education, health literacy and culture

Author

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  • Mak, Benise
  • Woo, Jean
  • Bowling, Ann
  • Wong, Florens
  • Chau, Pui Hing

Abstract

Objectives To examine how Chinese people in Hong Kong view health care prioritization and to compare the findings with those from a United Kingdom survey.Methods A cross-sectional opinion survey was conducted in Hong Kong and 1512 participants were interviewed.Results Data show that the highest rankings were accorded to "treatment for children" and "high technology services." Services for the elderly, whether in the community or in hospitals, and including end-of-life care, were ranked among the lowest. This view was also shared by healthcare professionals. Compared with the UK findings, there are stark contrasts in the low ranking of end-of-life care and the high ranking of high technology services among the HK population.Conclusions It is evident that most people would give priority to the young over the old in distributing a given amount of healthcare services. To meet the needs of ageing societies and to meet the needs of all users equitably, health care policy needs to acknowledge constraints and the needs for prioritization. Both the public and professionals should engage with policy makers in formulating a policy based on cost benefit considerations as well as overall societal view of prioritization that is not based on age alone.

Suggested Citation

  • Mak, Benise & Woo, Jean & Bowling, Ann & Wong, Florens & Chau, Pui Hing, 2011. "Health care prioritization in ageing societies: Influence of age, education, health literacy and culture," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(2-3), pages 219-233, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:hepoli:v:100:y:2011:i:2-3:p:219-233
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jean Woo, 2017. "Designing Fit for Purpose Health and Social Services for Ageing Populations," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-8, April.
    2. Gill, Betty & Griffin, Barbara & Hesketh, Beryl, 2013. "Changing expectations concerning life-extending treatment: The relevance of opportunity cost," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 66-73.
    3. Palumbo, Rocco & Annarumma, Carmela & Adinolfi, Paola & Musella, Marco & Piscopo, Gabriella, 2016. "The Italian Health Literacy Project: Insights from the assessment of health literacy skills in Italy," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(9), pages 1087-1094.
    4. Dorte Gyrd‐Hansen, 2018. "Is there additional value attached to health gains at the end of life? A revisit," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 71-75, January.

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