Informal Payments for Health Care: A Qualıtatıve Study in Turkey

Abstract

Informal payments for health care are common problems, especially in many developing countries. There is a growing interest in informal payments around the world. The study aims to explore the reasons for informal payments, in which ways informal payments occur and how it can be deterred. Due to lack of data purposive and snowball sampling approach was used. We conducted face-to-face interviews with a sample of 15 participants including healthcare users or patients. The participants were asked about the case in which they made informal payments, the reasons for those payments and their perception and attitude towards the case they went through. The study proposes that coping with a lack of information, strengthening the primary healthcare services and assuring the community engagement can reduce the informal payments in healthcare.