Glossary of access to health care and related concepts for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs): a critical review of international literature

Abstract

Access to health care is a multidimensional and complex concept. Achieving equitable access to care is an important goal for all countries, but particularly challenging in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). Despite wide use of the concept of access, it continues to be defined and measured in very different ways. This glossary is a structured overview of key definitions for concepts related to access to health care, with special focus on the interpretation for LMICs. It aims to help people with interest in health service delivery to draw an overview and provide some pointers for further reading in both conceptual and empirical advances in access to health care in LMICs. This document is structured in five sections. The first introduces a general description of the concept of access to health care and its relevance to LMICs, the second displays the search conducted on access to health care for LMICs and the framework used for presentation of glossary terms, the third describes theoretical models most frequently used in the past when looking at access to health care in LMICs, the fourth is the list of terms, and the final section is a discussion of the most salient aspects of this critical review.