From feeling depressed to getting diagnosed: Determinants of a diagnosis of depression after experiencing symptoms.

Background: Receiving a formal diagnosis for a depressive disorder is a prerequisite for getting treatment, yet the illness inherently complicates care-seeking. Thus, understanding the process from depression symptoms to diagnosis is crucial.

Aims: This study aims to disentangle (1) risk factors for depression symptoms from (2) facilitators and barriers to receiving a diagnosis experiencing depression symptoms.

Equal waiting times for all? Empirical evidence for elective surgeries in the Austrian public healthcare system.

Objectives: This study analyses waiting times for elective surgeries and potential determinants, including supplementary private health insurance, visits in the operating physician's private practice and informal payments for faster treatment.

Study Design: Retrospective patient questionnaire survey.

Methods: The survey was conducted in eleven Austrian rehabilitation centres in 2019.

[Loneliness in Germany-prevalence, development over time, and regional differences].

Background: Loneliness is widespread and has negative health consequences. The present study seeks to answer the following questions: (1) how many people in Germany are highly lonely, (2) how has loneliness changed in Germany over time-in particular with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, and (3) how is loneliness distributed regionally in Germany today?

Methods: The present study uses data from the 2013, 2017, and 2021 waves of the Socio-Economic Panel, a population representative panel study from Germany. Based on the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) loneliness scale, we estimate prevalences for high loneliness for different risk groups in Germany.

Gravity models for potential spatial healthcare access measurement: a systematic methodological review.

Background: Quantifying spatial access to care-the interplay of accessibility and availability-is vital for healthcare planning and understanding implications of services (mal-)distribution. A plethora of methods aims to measure potential spatial access to healthcare services. The current study conducts a systematic review to identify and assess gravity model-type methods for spatial healthcare access measurement and to summarize the use of these measures in empirical research.

Chronic disease onset and wellbeing development: longitudinal analysis and the role of healthcare access.

Background: Experiencing the onset of a chronic disease is a serious health event impacting living conditions and wellbeing. Investigating wellbeing development and its predictors is crucial to understand how individuals adapt to chronic illnesses. This study (i) analyzed the impact of a chronic disease on wellbeing development, and (ii) explored spatial healthcare access as potential moderating factor.