Health-Related Quality of Life and Health Service Utilization in Chinese Rural-to-Urban Migrant Workers

Chu-Hong Lu, Zhong-Cheng Luo, Jia-Ji Wang, Jian-Hu Zhong and Pei-Xi Wang
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Chu-Hong Lu: Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510182, China
Zhong-Cheng Luo: Ministry of Education-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xin Hua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao-Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China
Jia-Ji Wang: Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510182, China
Jian-Hu Zhong: Community Health Services Center of Liaobu, Dongguan 523401, China
Pei-Xi Wang: Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510182, China

IJERPH, 2015, vol. 12, issue 2, 1-10

Abstract: Objectives : The number of rural-to-urban migrant workers has been increasing rapidly in China over recent decades, but there is a scarcity of data on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and health service utilization among Chinese rural-to-urban migrant workers in comparison to local urban residents. We aimed to address this question. Methods : This was a cross-sectional study of 2315 rural-to-urban migrant workers and 2347 local urban residents in the Shenzhen-Dongguan economic zone (China) in 2013. Outcomes included HRQOL (measured by Health Survey Short Form 36) and health service utilization (self-reported). Results : Compared to local urban residents, rural-to-urban migrant workers had lower scores in all domains of HRQOL, and were more likely to report chronic illnesses (9.2% vs. 6.0%, adjusted OR = 1.62, 95% CI 1.28–2.04) and recent two-week morbidity (21.3% vs. 5.0%, adjusted OR = 5.41, 95% CI 4.26–6.88). Among individuals who reported sickness in the recent two weeks, migrant workers were much less likely to see a doctor (32.7% vs. 66.7%, adjusted OR = 0.21, 95% CI 0.13–0.36). Conclusions : Chinese rural-to-urban migrant workers have lower HRQOL, much more frequent morbidity, but are also much less likely to see a doctor in times of sickness as compared to local urban residents, indicating the existence of significant unmet medical care needs in this population.

Keywords: health-related quality of life (HRQOL); health service utilization; migrant workers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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