The impact of cigarette smoking on healthcare utilization among rural residents in China

ABSTRACT

Objectives: To assess how cigarette smoking affects health care utilization among rural residents in China and to analyze the choice of health facility among current and former smokers in rural China.

Methods: This study employed three waves (2010–2014) of the China Family Panel Studies. The data set included 10,330 adults in each wave. Fixed effect and random effect logistic models and multinomial logistic model were used for data analysis.

Results: First, according to the fixed effect logistic model, the results showed that current and former smokers are positively (ORs > 1) and significantly associated with outpatient care. Moreover, former smokers are positively (ORs > 1) and significantly associated with inpatient utilization. Second, based on the random effect logistic model, the results illustrated that heavy smokers and long-term quitters are positively (ORs > 1) and significantly related to outpatient care, and former smokers are positively (ORs > 1) and significantly associated with inpatient utilization.

Conclusions: Firstly, the present study found that current and former smokers use more outpatient care than non-smokers. Moreover, former smokers use more inpatient care than non-smokers. Secondly, former smokers use more inpatient care than non-smokers, long-term quitters decrease the probability of using inpatient care compared with recent and moderate-term quitters.

KEYWORDS:

• Smoking
• healthcare utilization
• rural residents
• China

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the 90th Anniversary of Chulalongkorn University Rachadapisek Sompote Fund.