Healthcare System Responsiveness in Covid-19: An Experience from Capital City of I.R of Iran

Ameneh Setareh Forouzan; Arash Mirabzadeh; Katayoun Falahat; Zahra Banazadeh; Monir Baradaran Eftekhari

doi:10.4103/ijpvm.ijpvm_14_22

Healthcare System Responsiveness in Covid-19: An Experience from Capital City of I.R of Iran

Int J Prev Med. 2023 Mar 21:14:34. doi: 10.4103/ijpvm.ijpvm_14_22. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ameneh Setareh Forouzan¹, Arash Mirabzadeh², Katayoun Falahat³, Zahra Banazadeh⁴, Monir Baradaran Eftekhari⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of social welfare, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
² Department of Psychiatric, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
³ Department of Research, Undersecretary for Research and Technology, Ministry of Health and Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁴ Department of Research, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁵ Department of Research, Shahrake Gharb, Undersecretary for Research and Technology, Ministry of Health and Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Background: As a public health emergency, coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) is a threat to our future; therefore, appropriate health system responsiveness (HSR), as an important criterion, is of crucial importance. This study aimed to evaluate the different dimensions of responsiveness of healthcare centers, both public and private, providing COVID-19 services in Tehran.

Methods: Following a cross-sectional design, this study was conducted in Tehran (the capital city of I.R. Iran) from May to November 2020. Data were collected using the World Health Organization (WHO) questionnaire on responsiveness. Two hundred questionnaires were filled out through face-to-face or phone call interviews in two public and private hospitals (100 in each) providing Covid-19 services. Participants were selected using the convenience sampling technique among all those who received Covid-19 services during the past six months in the city of Tehran.

Results: The mean age of participants was 45.9 ± 15.9 and 51.5% were female. On an average, 52.6% of the respondents evaluated at least one dimension of responsiveness as appropriate and/or strongly appropriate. Communication obtained the highest score (58.2%), followed by confidentiality (56.5%), dignity (56%), and prompt attention (52%). Meanwhile, autonomy and choice were evaluated as poor (moderate, weak, and strongly weak) by 63.5 and 52.5% of respondents. There was no significant association between the type of healthcare center (i.e., public or private) and responsiveness (p-value = 0.896). However, there was a significant difference between gender (p-value = 0.036) and education level (p-value = 0.014) with responsiveness. According to the respondents, prompt attention and choice were the most and least important dimensions, respectively.

Conclusions: Evaluation of HSR in the era of COVID-19 not only provides a tool for qualitative assessment of services but also plays an important role in providing feedback to policymakers to adopt effective policies.

Keywords: Covid-19; Iran; health system responsiveness; healthcare delivery.