Health Investment Management and Healthcare Quality in the Public System: A Gender Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this empirical research was to provide useful information for health system managers on the costs and investments involved in improving the quality of the National Health Service (NHS) based on patient assessments and from a gender perspective, i.e., without assuming that the perceived experience is identical for men and women. A cross-sectional study of 31 variables was applied using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) as a research tool. The data were obtained from the Spanish Ministry of Health, Consumption, and Social Welfare for the entire Spanish territory between 2005 and 2018. The influence of expenditure, resource allocation, and mortality was hypothesized with regard to patient satisfaction according to disconfirmation theory. Patient satisfaction reflects clinical effectiveness, and therefore is a measure of health system quality. The results show that women are more sensitive to public investment in health than men, i.e., an increase in the level of spending and resources increases satisfaction more in women. In both sexes, the level of expenditure has a direct influence on patient satisfaction, and therefore on the quality of the healthcare system. It is important to increase spending on primary care, especially on specialized medical care and diagnostic equipment. However, reducing the use of drugs in favor of alternative treatments or therapies is considered to be positive. Likewise, spending has an impact on available resources, and these, in turn, have a positive influence on the level of use and a negative impact on mortality. Resources, especially healthcare staff, nuclear magnetic resonance equipment, and the number of posts in day hospitals, increase patients’ positive perception of the NHS.