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Access to substance abuse treatment in the Cape Town metropole ...

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This study focuses specifically on health care system fac<strong>to</strong>rs as <strong>the</strong>y apply <strong>to</strong><strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> <strong>treatment</strong> services. The choice of <strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> <strong>treatment</strong>system fac<strong>to</strong>rs is based on f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs from national research (Myers, 2004). As<strong>in</strong>dica<strong>to</strong>rs of resource allocation and system organization are largely unavailablefor <strong>the</strong> South African <strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> <strong>treatment</strong> system, this study usesqualitative methods <strong>to</strong> exam<strong>in</strong>e <strong>the</strong>se variables.2.2.2. Fac<strong>to</strong>rs with<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> external environmentAccord<strong>in</strong>g <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> BHSU, o<strong>the</strong>r contextual fac<strong>to</strong>rs that <strong>in</strong>fluence an <strong>in</strong>dividual’sability <strong>to</strong> access health care <strong>in</strong>clude external environmental <strong>in</strong>fluences, such as<strong>the</strong> economic, political, and social milieu, and prevail<strong>in</strong>g social norms (Andersen,1995; Litaker & Love, 2005; Phillips et al., 1998; Rew, 1998). This group of <strong>in</strong>terrelatedcharacteristics represents several basic <strong>in</strong>fluences that shape <strong>the</strong>opportunities available <strong>to</strong> <strong>in</strong>dividuals <strong>in</strong>dependently of <strong>the</strong>ir personalcharacteristics (Litaker & Love, 2005), by provid<strong>in</strong>g a context for health servicedelivery (Rew, 1998).This study weaves an understand<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>the</strong> socio-cultural context with<strong>in</strong> which <strong>the</strong>South African <strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> <strong>treatment</strong> system is located throughout itsconceptual framework; particularly <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> qualitative component of <strong>the</strong> studywhich explicitly explores <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>fluence of contextual fac<strong>to</strong>rs on realized access.The <strong>in</strong>clusion of <strong>the</strong>se fac<strong>to</strong>rs is based on <strong>the</strong> understand<strong>in</strong>g that <strong>substance</strong><strong>abuse</strong> outcomes, <strong>the</strong> use of <strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> services, and <strong>the</strong> structure andfunction<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>the</strong> <strong>substance</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> <strong>treatment</strong> system are shaped by political andeconomic ideologies, power relations and socially constructed roles <strong>in</strong>herent <strong>in</strong>any given society (Morgan et al., 2004; Zurayk, 2001).2.3. THE HEALTH BEHAVIOUR DOMAIN: UTILIZATIONThe conceptual model <strong>in</strong> this study focuses on one aspect of <strong>the</strong> BHSU’s healthbehaviour doma<strong>in</strong>, namely health services utilization. This is viewed as animmediate outcome of access <strong>to</strong> health care (Andersen, 1995). The BHSUdef<strong>in</strong>es health service utilization as obta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g health care provision <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> form of20

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