Exploring Healthcare Access in Low- and Middle Income Countries: Achievements, Synergies, Opportunities and Challenges

Low- and Middle Income Countries (LMICs) constitute about 54% of the world population and are characterized by limited economic resources, challenges with infrastructural development, healthcare and education. Many countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean are in the LMIC group. Access to healthcare is attained when each individual is able realize the need for healthcare services, seek, and use these services and get fulfilment from the utilized healthcare services. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim for a world where everyone has the opportunity to thrive, including having access to good health. SDG 3 specifically calls for healthy lives and well-being for all at all ages with special emphasis on “universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare services” and “universal health coverage including financial risk protection, access to quality, essential healthcare services, access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all”.

Although there have been improvement in healthcare access in LMICs, especially in maternal health and preventative medicines, healthcare access in LMICs remains an issue of global importance. The Lancet Global Health Commission estimated in 2018 that about 9 million lives and $1.6 trillion in productivity are lost each year to poor quality medical care, of which a greater percentage comes from the LMICs. Majority of the challenges can be attributed to delays in seeking, reaching and receiving healthcare. Exploring the current state of healthcare access in LMICs would provide evidence-based action points useful for the advancement of healthcare access in these countries. Therefore, the goal of this Research Topic is to investigate the current state of healthcare access in LMICs including their achievements and setbacks, synergies and opportunities for improving healthcare access in these countries.

We encourage authors to submit manuscripts that cover a wide range of topics related to healthcare access in LMICs including, but not limited to:

• Reviews on healthcare access in LMICs: Conducting extensive literature reviews to identify the current state-of-the-art knowledge, research gaps and actionable policy recommendations that could lead to improved healthcare access in LMICs.

• Healthcare services utilization in LMICs: Analyzing healthcare utilization patterns and trends across different regions and populations, especially among children and women of reproductive age, the elderly, people living with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.

• Adolescents and access to healthcare services in LMICs: Investigating adolescents’ access to healthcare services, including family planning, based on geographic accessibility, acceptability, availability and affordability.

• Geographical and spatial dimensions to healthcare access in LMICs: Analyzing the interaction between individuals’ location and healthcare facilities including transportation modes, cost, distance, time and other limitations.

• Healthcare financing in LMICs: Investigating sources of healthcare financing, the relationship that exists among health insurance, health education and promotion, socio-cultural factors and affordability across different ethnic and sociocultural groups.

• Digitalization and access to healthcare in LMICs: Investigating the influence of digitalization on healthcare in LMICs, types, patterns and trends of digitalization across different regions and populations including people living with disabilities.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: healthcare access, low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), health equity, universal health coverage, healthcare financing

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.