Health Related Quality of Life Inequalities

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About this Research Topic

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Background

Since 2000, the World Health Organization has declared the reduction of health inequalities between and within nations as one of its prime objectives. Despite the substantial improvement in the health status of the populations across the world, health inequalities between richer and poorer nations, as well as across different socioeconomic classes within a given nation, have remained static or even widened. In a similar vein, in 2009 the European Commission published a document entitled “Solidarity in health: reducing health inequalities in the European Member states.” Of note, in 2011 the gap in life expectancy among the EU-27 member states was 11.8 years for males and 7.9 years for females. With respect to health-related quality of life (HRQoL), the level of inequalities in self-assessed health and the health inequality profile greatly differs across countries. These trends have been identified both in Western and non-Western nations.

Documenting and reducing health inequalities constitutes a prime objective of public health policies. A large amount of research has been conducted among epidemiologists, economists, clinicians, sociologists and public health experts analyzing the psychological, gendered, economic, demographic and psychosocial aspects of health inequalities. The majority of research has mainly focused on aggregate objective indicators of health such as mortality, morbidity, and life expectancy. In the literature, research on patient reported outcomes such as HRQoL has become increasingly common as life expectancy increases and persons are living longer with chronic conditions. HRQoL is a useful global indicator to assess health inequalities between and within society. The main goal of this Research Topic is to investigate the magnitude of inequalities in HRQoL using the EuroQol family of instruments (i.e., EQ-5D-3L, EQ-5D-3L, EQ-5D-Y, and E-HWB). The research will analyze the differential and synergistic effects of a variety of characteristics that impact HRQoL, including age, gender, occupation, educational, socio-economic class, race/ethnicity, place of residence, and life style factors. The research will make use of existing surveys launched in different countries and include data from children and adults.

Governments and international organizations have expressed concerns about the wide and persistent differences in HRQoL between and within countries across the social gradient. The health gaps are at odds with the EU core values of equity, efficiency and universality. We would like to invite contributors to submit methodological or policy related papers on the following topics related to HRQoL:
1) Methodological issues in the measurement of health inequalities based on the EuroQol instruments.
2) The public health approach in assessing health inequalities versus economic and psychological approaches
3) The dynamics of health inequalities within and across different nations and regions
4) Causes of health inequalities throughout the life span: an intergenerational approach.
5) The impact of an economic crisis on health inequalities.
6) Health inequalities related to life style and living conditions
7) Health inequalities in chronic diseases
8) Inequalities in access to and quality of health services
9) Poverty, social exclusion and health inequalities.

Keywords: Health inequalities, Health-related quality of life, EuroQol

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.

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