Accessibility to and Utilization of Healthcare Services Pre- and Post-typhoon Yolanda as Perceived by Senior Citizens in a Rural Area in the Philippines
Background: The problems of accessibility to and utilization of healthcare services are fundamental and constant issues in every country's healthcare system especially among the senior citizens. Objective: The study investigated the accessibility to and utilization of healthcare services among senior citizens in the Province of Leyte as determined by the predisposing, enabling, and need factors. Methods: The sample consisted of 496 60 years old and above senior citizens from randomly selected barangays of Districts 1 and 2 of Leyte Province. An interview schedule was designed to gather data through structured interviews. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics to determine the level of accessibility and utilization, Point-biserial and Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient (Pearson's r) and eta correlation to check significant relationships among variables, and multiple linear regression to identify predictors of accessibility and utilization. Results: Findings revealed that sex, occupation, primary source of income, health status, medical condition, and disability had weak correlations with accessibility and utilization during pre-typhoon and post-typhoon. Lastly, medical conditions and health status were the best predictors of accessibility and utilization during pre-typhoon and post-typhoon. These findings lead to the development of a local model on the accessibility to and utilization of healthcare services that are more reflective for senior citizens in rural areas in the Philippines. Conclusion: More research is needed to replicate these results to substantiate the significance of addressing the healthcare needs of the senior citizens in rural areas.