Core-periphery differences in children's health and use of general practitioner services in Finland from 1964 to 1987

• Published in: Social science & medicine (1982) Vol. 33; no. 9; pp. 1023 - 1028
• Main Authors: Vuorinen, Heikki S., Mäkelä, Matti, Tuomikoski, Hannu, Floman, Peter
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 1991; Elsevier; Pergamon Press Inc
• Series: Social Science & Medicine
• Subjects: 1964-1987; Adolescent; Age Factors; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child Health Services - statistics & numerical data; Child Welfare - statistics & numerical data; Child, Preschool; Children; Children & youth; Chronic Disease - epidemiology; Core; core periphery children health policy; Female; Finland; Finland - epidemiology; Health; Health Status; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Male; Medical sciences; periphery; Periphery differences; policy; Prevalence; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Rural Health; Sex Factors; Urban Health; Europe; Finland; core; health; children; periphery; policy; Human; Health policy; Child; Public health; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0277-9536; 1873-5347
• DOI: 10.1016/0277-9536(91)90007-Y

Finland is a modern welfare state in Northern Europe especially proud of its development of programs for children's health. The aim of this study was to investigate the development of core-periphery differences in children's health and use of health services. The study material was obtained from the national health and social security interview survey carried out in 1964, 1968, 1976 and 1987. Age standardized prevalance of chronic diseases, number of restricted-activity days and physician contacts were presented for two age groups: 0–6-year-olds and 7–14-year-olds. The prevalence of chronic diseases was quite similar in the core and periphery in 1976 and 1987, but the number of restricted-activity days throughout the study period (1964–1987) was significantly higher in the core than in the periphery. The consistently higher frequency of physician contacts in the core in comparison with the periphery was spectacular; the welfare policy of the last decades seems to have had very little or no effect on this difference. The core-periphery division thus continues to have relevance with respect to the health of Finnish children.