Date of Conferral

2020

Degree

Doctor of Healthcare Administration (D.H.A.)

School

Health Services

Advisor

STEPHEN L. MEIGS

Abstract

Coronary heart disease (CHD), the leading cause of death worldwide, affects about 8.45 million United States veterans, individuals honorably discharged from the active military, naval services, and air services. The purpose of this study was to determine whether veterans’ access to care is associated with income level determinants, such as job status, education level, and location. Using the social cognitive theory as the framework, the study examined the extent to which income level and the other social determinants, impacted access to care for veterans with CHD. The 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the nation’s leading data system was the selected database for the research. The database consists of 275 variables, including Survey of Metropolitan/Micropolitan Area Risk Trends MMSA data. The trends survey was comprised of 486,000 participants. Among them were 63,919 veterans. The chi-square method was used for the interpretation of the analyses. The veterans’ responses were used to determine whether there was correlation to identify the extent to which socioeconomic factors impacted access to care among a population with CHD. The findings suggested that these social determinants did not influence the ability of veterans with CHD to access care. Findings of this study could be used to better understand the needs of veterans who have limited or no access to care.

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