Survey shows access to healthcare during pandemic varied widely based on social determinants

The study has implications for health equity as McMaster University researchers found the degree to which people were affected depended on factors like race, immigration status, sex, age and education and income levels. From Sept. to Dec. 2020, 25% of survey respondents were challenged by accessing healthcare services, 8% didn’t go to a hospital or see a doctor when they needed to and 4% faced barriers to testing for COVID-19 infection. Immigrants and people with chronic conditions were more likely to report challenges, while women and racialized people were more likely to not visit the hospital or to see a doctor when needed. Redirection was more of an issue for those aged 50 to 54 years old than for those aged 85 to 96 years old. People with higher education levels were more likely to report facing challenges accessing healthcare, though the authors believe this could be because they had better access to healthcare pre-pandemic.