Desigualdades en salud y su relación con las tasas de letalidad del COVID-19 en una clínica de alto nivel de complejidad de Armenia – Quindío entre 2020 a 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic had a global impact, disproportionately affecting different populations based on socioeconomic, geographical, and healthcare access factors. The virus's lethality, the proportion of deaths among diagnosed cases, is a key indicator for assessing health inequalities and the effectiveness of health responses. Understanding how these inequalities manifest is essential for developing more equitable health policies. To determine the relationship between health inequalities and COVID-19 lethality in patients treated at the Sagrada Familia Clinic in Armenia, Quindío, between 2020 and 2021. A quantitative methodology with descriptive and correlational statistical analysis was used. The Relative Index of Inequality (RII), the Concentration Index (CI), and the Concentration Curve (CC) were used to measure inequalities in the case-fatality rate (CFR) of COVID-19. CFR was calculated discriminated by age groups, sex, socioeconomic status, area of occurrence, health insurance regime, and nationality. Data were obtained from the SIVIGILA database, completed during the pandemic for each suspected case. Significant differences in COVID-19 lethality were found. The highest rates were observed in socioeconomic stratum 1 (0.528) and in dispersed rural areas (0.143). A concentration of lethality was identified among patients under the subsidized regime (0.138) and in rural areas. The Concentration Index was -0.14, indicating an unequal distribution of lethality towards the most disadvantaged groups. Lethality was zero among foreign patients (0.000), while for Colombians it was 0.072. The findings indicate the need to implement health policies aimed at reducing the observed inequality gaps. It is a priority to focus efforts on improving access to healthcare for vulnerable groups and in rural areas. This quantitative analysis contributes to the design of more equitable strategies for managing future health emergencies.

• Autores: Castillo Valencia, Ginna Marcela; Villazón Gutiérrez, Edgardo
• Fecha de publicación: 2025
• Institución: Corporación Universidad de la Costa
• Repositorio: REDICUC - Repositorio CUC
• Idioma: spa
• OAI Identifier: oai:repositorio.cuc.edu.co:11323/14335
• Acceso en línea: https://hdl.handle.net/11323/14335; https://repositorio.cuc.edu.co/
• Palabra clave: Cobertura de servicios de salud; COVID-19; Desigualdades en la salud; Factores socioeconómicos; Letalidad; Health Services Coverage; Health Status Disparities; Socioeconomic factors; Mortality
• Rights: openAccess
• License: Atribución-NoComercial-SinDerivadas 4.0 Internacional (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)