Irish Health Survey 2019 - Main Results

This chapter outlines the engagement of people in Ireland aged 15 years and over with the Irish health system. We will see differences in how people engage with the Irish health system. Females, older people and the disadvantaged are more likely than men, younger people and more affluent persons to engage with the health system. Unemployed persons also report higher levels of engagement with the health system than those in employment, and also experience higher levels of not accessing health care due to waiting lists than those in employment. Younger people report higher levels than older people of accessing mental health services.

Across the broad range of visits to health professionals, females are more likely to visit than men. For example, 82% of females reported that they visited a GP in the 12 months prior to survey, compared to 68% of men, and 63% of females visited a dentist compared to 52% of men. See Table 3.1 and Figure 3.1.

For visit to dentists, it is noticeable that visits peak in the 55-64 age group, with 63% of this group visiting a dentist in the 12 months prior to the survey. After age 64, visits decline, with only 38% of people aged 75 years and over visiting a dentist. More affluent people visit a dentist more – two-thirds (66%) of the Very affluent group compared to half (50%) of the Very disadvantaged group. See Table 3.1 and Figure 3.2.

The age group 15-24 years report the highest visits to a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist at 6% of this age group, while only 2% of persons those aged 75 years and older report such visits. See Table 3.1 and Figure 3.3.

At State level, 11% of persons aged 15 years and over spent time in hospital as an in-patient in the 12 months prior to survey. Older people have the highest rates of in-patient admission, with 22% of persons aged 75 years and over reporting themselves as an in-patient compared to 7% of persons aged 15-24 years. In-patient admission rises with relative disadvantage level, with 13% of Very disadvantaged persons aged 15 years and over reporting in-patient admission compared to 9% of Very affluent people. See Table 3.2.

More people report being a day-case patient than an in-patient – 21% of persons aged 15 years and over compared to 11% for in-patient admission. The difference between the relative disadvantage levels for day-case admission are smaller than for in-patient admission. Over twice as many 15-24 year olds experienced day-case admission (16%) as opposed to in-patient admission (7%). See Table 3.2.

Table 3.3 below outlines the percentage of persons aged 15 years and over who used prescribed and non-prescribed medications in the two weeks prior to interview. It can be seen that females are more likely to use prescribed medications than males (48% of females compared to 40% of males). Unsurprisingly perhaps, older people are much more likely to use prescribed medications than younger people – 90% of persons aged 75 years and over compared to 24% of persons aged 15-24 years. See Table 3.3 and Figure 3.4.

Almost a fifth (19%) of Unemployed persons report having unmet health care needs in the 12 months prior to survey due to waiting lists, compared to 12% of persons In employment. At State level, 14% of persons aged 15 years and over report unmet health care needs due to waiting lists, with females (16%) experiencing this more than men (11%). Unmet health care needs due to waiting lists generally rises with level of disadvantage, with 18% of Very disadvantaged persons reporting this compared to 10% of Very affluent persons. See Table 3.4 and Figure 3.5.

At State level, 7% of persons aged 15 years and over report not accessing a dental examination or treatment in the previous 12 months due to affordability reasons. This is higher than the levels for a medical examination (5%), obtaining prescribed medicines (3%) or mental health care (2%). See Table 3.5.

In general, the older age groups report less issues with accessing general medical services for affordability reasons than younger persons, with the differences most pronounced for accessing a dental examination or treatment - for example, 10% of the age groups 25-34 and 35-44 years report affordability issues with accessing dental care, compared to only 2% of persons aged 75 years and over. See Table 3.5.

Across the medical services analysed (medical treatment, dental care, prescribed medication and mental health care), there are very little differences in accessing these services for affordability reasons by level of disadvantage, although Unemployed persons compared to those In employment report higher levels of affordability issues – for example, 13% of Unemployed persons report affordability as an issue for a medical examination or treatment, compared to 6% of those In employment. See Table 3.5.