DETERMINATION OF FACTORS AFFECTING HEALTH CARE UTILIZATION WITH PANEL DATA ANALYSIS

Abstract

Nowadays, there are significant improvements in healthcare, meanwhile significant differences remain in healthcare utilization. These differences arise due to the effect of many factors, especially socioeconomic factors. From this point of view, this research by considering healthcare utilization in 81 provinces of Turkey, aimed to determine the factors that influence healthcare utilization. For this purpose, we used the number of physician visits per capita as an indicator of healthcare utilization. Based on the five-year (2013-2017) data of 81 provinces, we determined the explanatory factors affecting healthcare utilization with the model created in panel data analysis. As a result of the research, we found that population aged over 65 years, number of beds per 10,000 people, and ratio of urban population explained the differences in health care utilization. These results provide information on understanding the underlying causes and influencing factors of health care utilization and creating health policies.