Public trust in government doctors and hospitals in India
International Journal of Social Economics
ISSN: 0306-8293
Article publication date: 23 May 2023
Issue publication date: 17 November 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The author studies the determinants of public trust in government doctors and hospitals (DH) – a crucial indicator of the quality of a country's healthcare system – in India by analyzing the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) 2011–2012.
Design/methodology/approach
The author uses descriptive statistics and a set of ordered probit regression models controlling for a set of individual-specific, household-level and other covariates and analyze across heterogeneous contexts (national/rural/urban/male heads/female heads/social groups).
Findings
Across contexts, people reporting a great deal of trust in private DH (PDH) are significantly more likely to report a great deal of trust in government DH. Those people with a great deal of trust in government schools to provide good education (vis-à-vis people with only some trust in government school) have significantly higher likelihood of reporting a great deal of trust in government DH. Visiting a private doctor last time (vis-à-vis a government doctor) makes reporting higher trust levels in government DH less likely.
Practical implications
India's healthcare system is afflicted with several resource allocation problems and low public trust issues are indicative of misgovernance. In presence of limited state capacity, ubiquitous corruption and underwhelming institutional trust, understanding the factors influencing public trust in healthcare providers is critical to designing appropriate trust-enhancing public health policies.
Originality/value
Given the sparse empirical literature on public trust in healthcare systems in the developing countries such as India, this study is a pertinent contribution as the study explains the determinants of public trust in DH using a comprehensive unit-recorded household survey dataset.
Keywords
Citation
Panda, S. (2023), "Public trust in government doctors and hospitals in India", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 50 No. 11, pp. 1602-1617. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-07-2022-0498
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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