Who gets what? Utilization of health services in Indonesia

An evaluation of health service utilization patterns was carried out in five rural districts and a number of urban areas in Indonesia. The study was part of a larger effort to develop economically-related information about the health care services. Utilization levels were then related to such selected population variables as distance from health facilities, insurance status and income. The annual contact rate, curative plus preventive, with all public sector facilities was found to be 0.8 per capita. The geographic catchment areas of the facilities were also found to be very limited. The insured population (civil servants and their families) used services about four times more frequently, on average, than did the rest of the population. In one provincial study, the top 9 per cent of income earners made up one-third of all hospital inpatients, one-half of all hospital outpatients, and one-quarter of all health centre visitors. The implications of these results for equity and efficiency are discussed.