Abstract

Objective: To determine the percentage of health care utilization, health care seeking behavior and out of pocket expenditure among employees of combined military hospital (CMH) Lahore medical college.
Methodology: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 301 employees participated from April to May 2021. Non-probability convenience sampling technique was used. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23.
Results: Of 301 responses, 71.4% were male and 28.6% females. Out of 301 respondents, 184(61.1%) spent 0-500 rupees of their income on outpatient care spending. 62(20.6%) spent on nursing of elderly patients. Out of all respondents 201(66.8%) had less than 2 family members fallen ill during lockdown. Out of 301 respondents, 46(15.3%) faced difficulty in taking physician’s appointments. The minimum mental health scoring of respondents was 6 and maximum was 21 (average 10.92 SD=2.63). Out of 301 respondents, 205(68.1%) considered that the vaccine was protective and 228(75.7%) were ready to get themselves vaccinated.
Conclusion: The behavior of the people to seek out health care has changed during the pandemic resulting in an increased out of pocket expenditure and a decreased number of visits to the hospitals. The results could provide the government with a comprehensive picture of the effect of COVID-19 pandemic upon our healthcare system.

Key words: Health care utilization, out of pocket expenditure, vaccination.