ObjectiveTo analyze whether the changes observed in the level and distribution of resources for maternal health and family planning (MHFP) programs from 2003 to 2012 were consistent with the financial goals of the related policies.Materials and MethodsA longitudinal descriptive analysis of the Mexican Reproductive Health Subaccounts 2003–2012 was performed by financing scheme and health function. Financing schemes included social security, government schemes, household out-of-pocket (OOP) payments, and private insurance plans. Functions were preventive care, including family planning, antenatal and puerperium health services, normal and cesarean deliveries, and treatment of complications. Changes in the financial imbalance indicators covered by MHFP policy were tracked: (a) public and OOP expenditures as percentages of total MHFP spending; (b) public expenditure per woman of reproductive age (WoRA, 15–49 years) by financing scheme; (c) public expenditure on treating complications as a percentage of preventive care; and (d) public expenditure on WoRA at state level. Statistical analyses of trends and distributions were performed.ResultsPublic expenditure on government schemes grew by approximately 300%, and the financial imbalance between populations covered by social security and government schemes decreased. The financial burden on households declined, particularly among households without social security. Expenditure on preventive care grew by 16%, narrowing the financing gap between treatment of complications and preventive care. Finally, public expenditure per WoRA for government schemes nearly doubled at the state level, although considerable disparities persist.ConclusionsChanges in the level and distribution of MHFP funding from 2003 to 2012 were consistent with the relevant policy goals. However, improving efficiency requires further analysis to ascertain the impact of investments on health outcomes. This, in turn, will require better financial data systems as a precondition for improving the monitoring and accountability functions in Mexico.

ObjectiveIn the context of aiming to achieve universal health coverage in Mexico, this study compares access to prescribed medicines (ATPM) between Seguro Popular (SP) and non-SP affiliated outpatient health service users.Materials and MethodsATPM by 6,123 users of outpatient services was analyzed using the National Health and Nutrition Survey 2012. Adjusted bi-probit models were performed incorporating instrumental variables.Results17.3% of SP and 10.1% of the non-SP population lacked ATPM. Two-thirds of all outpatient SP and 18.5% of all outpatient non-SP received health services at Ministry of Health facilities, among whom, 64.6 and 53.6% of the SP and non-SP population respectively reported ATPM at these facilities. Lack of medicines in health units, chronic health problems (compared to acute conditions) and prescription ≥3 medicines were risk factors for non-ATPM. Adjusted models suggest that when using Ministry of Health services, the SP population has a higher probability of ATMP compared to the non-SP population.ConclusionGiven the aspirations of achieving universal health coverage in Mexico, it is important to increase ATPM in Ministry of Health facilities thereby ensuring basic rights to health care are met.

No abstract

Background: The third Sustainable Development Goal aims to ensure healthy lives and to promote well-being for all at all ages. The health system plays a key role in achieving these goals and must have sufficient human resources in order to provide care to the population according to their needs and expectations. Methods: This paper explores the issues of unemployment, underemployment, and labor wastage in physicians and nurses in Mexico, all of which serve as barriers to achieving universal health coverage. We conducted a descriptive, observational, and longitudinal study to analyze the rates of employment, underemployment, unemployment, and labor wastage during the period 2005-2017 by gender. We used data from the National Occupation and Employment Survey. Calculating the average annual rates (AAR) for the period, we describe trends of the calculated rates. In addition, for 2017, we calculated health workforce densities for each of the 32 Mexican states and estimated the gaps with respect to the threshold of 4.45 health workers per 1000 inhabitants, as proposed in the Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health. Results: The AAR of employed female physicians was lower than men, and the AARs of qualitative underemployment, unemployment, and labor wastage for female physicians are higher than those of men. Female nurses, however, had a higher AAR in employment than male nurses and a lower AAR of qualitative underemployment and unemployment rates. Both female physicians and nurses showed a higher AAR in labor wastage rates than men. The density of health workers per 1000 inhabitants employed in the health sector was 4.20, and the estimated deficit of workers needed to match the threshold proposed in the Global Strategy is 70 161 workers distributed among the 16 states that do not reach the threshold. Conclusions: We provide evidence of the existence of gender gaps among physicians and nurses in the labor market with evident disadvantages for female physicians, particularly in labor wastage. In addition, our results suggest that the lack of physicians and nurses working in the health sector contributes to the inability to reach the health worker density threshold proposed by the Global Strategy.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the human resources for health and analyze the inequality in its distribution in Mexico. METHODS: Cross-sectional study based on the National Occupation and Employment Survey (ENOE in Spanish) for the fourth quarter of 2018 in Mexico. Graduated physicians and nurses, and auxiliary/technician nurses with completed studies were considered as human resources for health. States were grouped by degree of marginalization. Densities of human resources for health per 1,000 inhabitants, Index of Dissimilarity (DI) and Concentration Indices (CI) were estimated as measures of unequal distribution. RESULTS: The density of human resources for health was 4.6 per 1,000 inhabitants. We found heterogeneity among states with densities from 2.3 to 10.5 per 1,000 inhabitants. Inequality was higher in the states with a very low degree of marginalization (CI = 0.4) than those with high marginalization (CI = 0.1), and the inequality in the distribution of physicians (CI = 0.5) was greater than in graduated nurses (CI = 0.3) among states. In addition, 17 states showed a density above the threshold of 4.5 per 1,000 inhabitants proposed in the Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health. That implies a deficit of nearly 60,000 human resources for health among the 15 states below the threshold. For all states, to reach a density equal to the national density of 4.6, about 12.6% of human health resources would have to be distributed among states that were below national density. CONCLUSIONS: In Mexico, there is inequality in the distribution of human resources for health, with state differences. Government mechanisms could support the balance in the labor market of physicians and nurses through a human resources policy

The purpose of this study was to assess whether government policies to expand the coverage of maternal health and family planning (MHFP) services were benefiting the adolescents in need. To this end, we estimated government MHFP expenditure for 10- to 19-year-old adolescents without social security (SS) coverage between 2003 and 2015. We evaluated its evolution and distribution nationally and sub-nationally by level of marginalization, as well as its relationship with demand indicators. Using Jointpoint regressions, we estimated the average annual percent change (AAPC) nationally and among states. Expenditure for adolescents without SS coverage registered 15% for AAPC for the period 2003–2011 and was stable for the remaining years, with 88% of spending allocated to maternal health. Growth in MHFP expenditure reduced the ratio of spending by 13% among groups of states with greater/lesser marginalization; nonetheless, the poorest states continued to show the lowest levels of expenditure. Although adolescents without SS coverage benefited from greater MHFP expenditure as a consequence of health policies directed at achieving universal health coverage, gaps persisted in its distribution among states, since those with similar demand indicators exhibited different levels of expenditure. Further actions are required to improve resource allocation to disadvantaged states and to reinforce the use of FP services by adolescents.

The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of health needs and use of outpatient services for indigenous (IP) and non-indigenous (NIP) populations aged ≥15 years, and to explore the associated factors and types of need. A cross-sectional study was conducted based on the 2018-19 National Health and Nutrition Survey. The population aged ≥15 years who had health needs and used outpatient services was identified. Logistic models were developed to explore the factors underlying the use of outpatient services. For both populations, being a woman increased the likelihood of using health services, and having health insurance was the most important variable in explaining the use of public health services. Compared to the NIP, a lower proportion of IP reported health needs during the month prior to the survey (12.8% vs. 14.7%); a higher proportion refrained from using outpatient services (19.6% vs. 12.6%); and a slightly higher proportion used public health services (56% vs. 55.4%). For the NIP, older age and belonging to a household that had received cash transfers from a social program, had few members, a high socioeconomic level, and a head with no educational lag, all increased the likelihood of using public health services. It is crucial to implement strategies that both increase the use of public health services by the IP and incorporate health-insurance coverage as a universal right.

El objetivo fue describir las características socioeconómicas y condiciones de empleo del personal médico en México. Estudio transversal con base en la Encuesta Nacional de Ocupación y Empleo (ENOE) de México, de los 4 trimestres de 2019 y el primer trimestre de 2020. Incluimos a todos los médicos con estudios universitarios concluidos. La variable precariedad laboral acumulada fue construida como la suma de cinco variables binarias relacionadas con el salario mínimo, jornada laboral, carencias de contrato, de seguridad y de prestaciones sociales. Con esta suma no ponderada, clasificamos las condiciones laborales en baja (1), media (2 a 3), alta (4 a 5), y ausencia de precariedad laboral (0). En el sector público, 13,4% y 3,3% de los médicos tienen precariedad laboral media y alta, respectivamente; los porcentajes son mayores en el sector privado, 38,5% y 7,7% (p < 0,01), respectivamente, debido principalmente a las carencias de contrato escrito y seguro médico. Estas condiciones se exacerban en las mujeres que trabajan en los consultorios médicos de las empresas del sector privado donde 75,2% y 6% de ellas tienen precariedad media y alta, respectivamente, mientras que en los hombres los porcentajes son 15,6 y 7,7%, respectivamente, (p < 0,01). Existe precariedad laboral en el sector salud mexicano; las condiciones laborales de los médicos del sector privado son más precarias que en el sector público, particularmente en los consultorios del sector privado, donde las mujeres están más expuestas a empleos precarios.