Asessment of the Demand for and Use of Health Services among the Rural Population of the Province of Salamanca. Polling by Personal Interviews

Abstract

This study falls withing the framework of the Community epidemiological studies and has the aim of ascertaining the demand for and use of health care services on the part of the rural population in Salamanca through the use of a Health Survey taken on a representative sample thereof. Surveys based on personal interviews are a useful method for obtaining data in epidemiological research and are a fast way of obtaining direct, upto-date health data, making it possible to asccrtain data such as demand for and use of services without excluding that sector of the population not norma& making use of the health care services (the underprivileged). Herein, we provide a description of the data which, when analyzed, can aid us in defining some of the needs and problems to be given priority and to be solved by the Health Care System and in rationally forecasting the future demand for health care services, which is the essence of Health Care Planning. According to the results obtained, the greatest demand is for primary care, falling within the 7I% percentile, with the main reason for seeking medical advice being the request for prescriptions. Only 7% of the demznd at the leve1 of primary care reach the hospital level, wich gives one an idea of the functional importance of Primary Care in our Health Care Systems.