Barriers to healthcare access for older people and opportunities for policy improvement

Abstract

With the increase in economic disparity, the number of older people in Japan who refrain from receiving healthcare services due to financial hardship has reportedly increased in recent years. The aim of this study was to examine various factors that lead to difficulties for social work professionals in assisting older people, examine the difficulties in using existing key protective programs, and identify opportunities for policy improvement. A content analysis was conducted using free-text survey responses in the related project, about cases in which social work professionals had difficulty providing assistance and about challenges related to programs and policies. Respondents to the index questionnaire survey were social workers from hospitals and three types of institutions (community comprehensive support centers, social welfare councils, and local governments) in six prefectures in the Kansai region of Japan. Factors causing difficulties in providing support were divided into three categories: factors about the service users, factors about the service providers, and factors related to the key protective programs and policies. In addition, access to the policies, the content of the policies, improvement of the support environment, and promotion of cooperation among service providers were specified as potential areas for improvement in using the policies. The classification of the factors causing support difficulties and the areas for improvement in using the protective programs and policies identified in this study may help professionals who support difficult cases.