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Navigating the post-2008 financial crisis era: bailouts, health expenditure, and unmet needs
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Date
2024
Authors
Loughnane, Conor
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University College Cork
Published Version
Abstract
The global financial crisis of 2008 remains a landmark event that transformed the economic landscape and triggered a series of unprecedented effects. This thesis offers a comprehensive exploration of the relationships between the 2008 financial crisis, subsequent bailout mechanisms and the emerging issues relating to healthcare financing and subsequent effects. This thesis is structured across four research chapters, each shedding light on distinct yet interconnected facets of the overarching research domain.
The first study in the thesis examines the complex interplay between the 2008 global financial crisis, subsequent bailout measures, and their implications for healthcare expenditure (healthcare expenditure refers to all expenditure on health including government and private expenditure). Through comprehensive analysis of World Health Organisation (WHO) health expenditure data, this chapter highlights the shifts in healthcare expenditure, with several countries such as Ireland and Portugal witnessing a change in the distribution of paying for healthcare and a number of health systems reporting negative consequences.
The second study conducts a scoping literature review, to identify the reasons and predictors for unmet healthcare needs. By synthesising existing research, this study contributes to the understanding of the complex factors that contribute to individuals unmet healthcare needs. The findings indicate that income and socioeconomic status are critically important factors in relation to unmet healthcare needs, implying that the financial crisis would likely impact unmet healthcare needs.
The third study undertakes an examination of unmet healthcare needs in Ireland, utilising data from the European Survey of Income and Living Conditions (EU – SILC). The econometric examination in the form of logistic and multinomial logistic regression (MNLM) examines the links between the financial crisis and unmet healthcare needs, enabling a nuanced examination of how economic volatility interacts with healthcare provision. The findings indicate that unmet healthcare needs were significantly higher after the financial crisis.
The final study narrows its focus to explore the specific domain of professional home care services, again utilising data from the European Survey of Income and Living Conditions. Investigating the drivers behind unmet needs using a probit regression in this context, the chapter contributes valuable insights into a growing component of healthcare delivery, shedding light on the challenges households face in accessing essential home-based care. The findings indicate those who cite the ability to make ends meet as “very easily” are less likely to have an individual requiring care or assistance in the home than those who cited with “great difficulty”.
This thesis presents a comprehensive analysis of the current state of knowledge in the field and offers insights that contribute to informing future health policy, especially in the context of Sláintecare in Ireland. The chapters collectively advance our understanding of the complex interrelationships between financial crises, bailout strategies, healthcare expenditure, and unmet healthcare needs, and contribute to the discourse on the intersection of finance and healthcare provision. The analysis includes examining the impact of bailouts on health expenditure, investigating the relationship between income, and reporting unmet healthcare needs, studying the effects of the financial crisis on unmet healthcare needs, and exploring the influence of financial stability on unmet home care needs.
In this thesis, a comprehensive analysis of the current state of knowledge in the field and insights that contribute to informing future health policy in the form of Sláintecare in Ireland is presented. Together, these chapters create a cohesive narrative. They advance our understanding of the complex interrelationships between financial crises, bailout strategies, healthcare expenditure, and unmet healthcare needs. This contributes to the discourse on the intersection of finance and healthcare provision. This includes examining the impact of bailouts on health expenditure, the relationship between income and reporting unmet healthcare needs, the effects of the financial crisis on unmet healthcare needs, and the influence of financial stability on unmet home care needs.
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Keywords
Health expenditure , Unmet healthcare needs , Global financial crisis , Health policy , Healthcare
Citation
Loughnane, C. 2024. Navigating the post-2008 financial crisis era: bailouts, health expenditure, and unmet needs. PhD Thesis, University College Cork.