Abstract
Outpatient healthcare services in Northern Ireland face significant challenges, including prolonged waiting times, increasing demand, and disparities in access to care. These challenges can lead to negative patient outcomes, inefficiencies in healthcare delivery, and increased health inequalities. This thesis examines the factors influencing outpatient waiting times, patterns of service utilisation, and inequity in access across specialities and demographic groups. Using a multi-method analytical approach, the research examines patient demographics, appointment attendance, geographic accessibility, and the role of telemedicine in shaping access to outpatient care. The study aims to provide evidence-based insights to inform strategies for improving the equity, accessibility, and efficiency of outpatient specialist services in Northern Ireland.Thesis is embargoed until 31 December 2030.
| Date of Award | Dec 2025 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
|
| Sponsors | Republic of Türkiye Ministry of National Education |
| Supervisor | Frank Kee (Supervisor), David Wright (Supervisor) & Felicity Lamrock (Supervisor) |
Keywords
- Waiting time
- outpatient healthcare
- health inequalities
- Northern ireland
- service delivery
- specialist services
- process mining
- health policy
- access to care
- healthcare data analysis
- healthcare
- big data
- multilevel modelling
- healthcare utilisation
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