APPROACHES AND METHODS FOR THE CLASSIFICATION OF HEALTH SYSTEMS

ABSTRACT

The health needs of the individuals and the society have increased with the development of medical practices and technologies throughout history. Health systems have emerged as a result of the activities which were carried out in order to both respond to the health needs of the individuals and the society and spread health services to the whole society. Health systems are unique to each society; they have developed in accordance with their historical, social, economic and political structures. For this reason, examining the unique features of health systems and determining the types of health systems have always attracted the attention of researchers. The purpose of this research; to examine the studies on the classification of health systems in their historical development, to explain the current stage and to contribute to the ongoing discussions. For this purpose, studies on classification of health systems will be examined in terms of theoretical approach, method and variables used in their historical development. In addition, the situation of Turkey in studies on the classification of health systems will be evaluated within the scope of this research.

Research on the classification of health systems started in the 1950s and gained momentum especially since the 2000s. Preliminary studies are generally studies in which countries are evaluated and classified over a theoretical framework. However, in recent years, studies on the classification of health systems supported by statistical analyzes have gained importance by compiling data that enable health systems to be comparable in terms of countries. When the relevant literature is examined, studies on the classification of health systems are generally carried out through two main approaches. The first of these is the studies that apply the deductive method in which health systems are classified with a theoretical approach. The second is the studies that apply the inductive method, in which countries are supported by quantitative data and statistical methods with certain variables. In these studies, health systems are examined and classified on the basis of variables such as property relations, government interventions, financing, service delivery and regulation. Turkey is not sufficiently involved in comparative studies on the classification of health systems. Lack of comparable data is cited as the reason for this.

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