Socioeconomic status and waiting times for health services: An international literature review and evidence from the Italian National Health System

In publicly funded health systems, waiting times are considered a main policy issue because they are reaching a critical length for several health services in many OECD countries [1,2]. Long waiting times may serve as an important barrier to real and perceived access to health care services [3]. Moreover, longer waiting times for treatments leads to dissatisfaction and may cause deterioration in a patient ’s health status [4] or reduced treatment effectiveness [5,6].

Source: Health Policy - January 11, 2018 Category: Health Management Authors: Stefano Landi, Enrico Ivaldi, Angela Testi Source Type: research