News Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: May 23, 2003
For more information, contact Virginia Elliott, Senior Program Officer
620-662-8586

Access to Health Care Identified in Study As Priority Health Need of Kansans

Hutchinson, Kansas – A recent study completed for the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund identified access to health care as the most frequently mentioned priority health need in Kansas.

The study, conducted by Dr. Carol Barbeito, President, CLB & Associates, involved 93 interviews of Kansas leaders, two focus groups, and a survey to reach those who had sought grants from the Health Ministry Fund. Participants included health experts, government officials, foundation executives, directors of nonprofit organizations, and pastoral leaders of the United Methodist Church.

When asked to identify the priority unmet or emerging health need of Kansans, 125 responded with access to health care. In addition to general concerns, specific access issues such as the increasing numbers of uninsured, access to dental care, the cost of health care and prescription drugs, and access in rural areas were mentioned. Receiving one to three mentions concerning access to health care were transportation, vision care, mental health, obstetrics/gynecological care, and immunizations.

Kansas groups particularly impacted by access to health care issues that were identified by interviewees are farmers, senior citizens, the poor, children, and families with children.

In addition to the 125 responses that specifically identified access to health care as a priority, other priorities mentioned could be interpreted as part of access to health care concerns, according to Barbeito. Forty responses cited care for the aging as a priority and health care work force issues such as shortages, recruitment, and training of health care professionals received 32 responses. Other related issues raised included the need for a new health care delivery system, mental health needs, unemployment and the economy, and health care for minorities. With this interpretation, the total number of responses identifying access to health care as a priority need in Kansas was 251.

The next highest priority mentioned in the study was the need for healthy communities and health prevention. These were primarily general concerns, however the need to do more to promote good nutrition and prevent obesity, which results in diseases such as diabetes, was prominently mentioned. Teen pregnancy, gang violence, drug and alcohol abuse, and tobacco use were also cited. A total of 53 responses were in this category.

Barbeito summarized her findings by calling access to health care “a bad problem that is going to get worse.” Contributing factors, she said, include a weak national economic picture, unemployment, and underemployment. She also cited a greater competition among nonprofits for grants, mal-distribution and the aging of the health care work force, low participation by health care providers in government programs for a variety of reasons, and the growing costs of health care and health insurance. Reported State government policies for coping with revenue shortfalls by eliminating some health and human services, adopting tougher standards for people to qualify for programs and raising fees to participants will compound access issues, Barbeito reported.

She suggested the likely outcomes of these factors will be swelling numbers of people who will not qualify to receive government supported services and who cannot afford insurance or private payment for services. She added that the safety net health and basic human needs providers are unable to meet service needs.

“We can expect more people turning to hospital emergency rooms for treatment of non-emergency health needs or deferring care until there is an emergency,” said Barbeito. “This drives overall costs of health care up, results in unnecessary suffering and worsening of health conditions and may interfere with responses to true emergencies,” she concluded.

The study was part of the Health Ministry Fund’s planning process to improve its ability to impact health, healing, and wholeness in Kansas. The Kansas West Conference of the United Methodist Church created the health philanthropy in 1986 with a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Wesley Medical Center in Wichita.

“After 16 years as a grantmaker in health, this study came about from the strong desire by the trustees and staff to make sure we are on track and doing what we can to truly make a difference in the health of Kansans,” said Kim Moore, president of the Health Ministry Fund.

The study, said Moore, is being used to determine the future grantmaking priorities of the Health Ministry Fund.
The full study executive summary can be found on the Health Ministry Fund website at www.healthfund.org.

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