The influence of demographic factors in access to public health care in kenya: A case of nairobi county, kenya

This study examines the influence of demographic variables on access to healthcare in Kenya, a case for Nairobi County. The objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of these demographic variables on access to public healthcare, a case for Nairobi County. It focuses on age, gender, income, education and wealth. This paper examines the health status of the residents in Nairobi County and reviews the effects of selected demographic factors on access to healthcare. The study used data from a sample of 1066 households purposively selected from Nairobi County. All households were aged 15 years and above. The households were subjected to interviews that covered a wide range of topics. Descriptive and cross-sectional designs were chosen for the study. The study adopted multiple sampling methods for the study. These included purposive sampling, systematic sampling, snowball sampling, and multistage cluster sampling frame. The data was collected using various techniques or instruments which included observation, key informant interviews, questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and focus-group discussions. The data was processed using descriptive statistics. Correlation and regression analyses were used to correlate and interpret the data of the study. The findings show that access to healthcare was unequal amongst all the social classes in the County. This is despite considerable attention to the problem of health inequalities. There are substantial differences in health, and these still perpetuate. These differences have been attributed to socio-economic inequalities among the social classes. The upper and middle classes have better access to socio-economic resources, and this provides them with adequate capabilities to access healthcare resources. The lower social class lack these resources and therefore have no capabilities to access healthcare. This explains the persistent inequalities in healthcare between the social groups in the County. This study argues that health inequalities should be reduced or illuminated in the County. Socio-economic inequalities limit the capabilities of the households to access healthcare. The distribution of these factors needs urgent research. There is evidence that there are biases in the allocation of these resources and policymakers should address these skewed allocations.