A Case Study of Access to Late-Life Depression Care in Multiple Dimensions in Hong Kong

Access to care is essential in any society, as it enables individuals to obtain necessary resources for improving physical and health outcomes, as well as overall quality of life (Gulliford et al., 2002; Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2019). Good access to care is also indicative of better human development in terms of health, education, and income (Chipman et al., 2017). However, at least half of the global population lacks access to essential health services (World Health Organisation, 2017b). Access to mental health care is particularly challenging and inequitable (Levesque et al., 2013; Alegría et al., 2018; McDaid and Kousoulis, 2020). Access to care is not only often inadequate but also unevenly distributed, primarily due to social determinants that can be modified. Over 80% of people suffering from mental health conditions do not receive quality or affordable care (World Health Organisation, 2019). The challenges of mental health problems in later life are further exacerbated by global population ageing. In 2019, 703 million people were aged 65 or above worldwide, a number projected to increase to 1.5 billion by 2050 (United Nations, 2019). This demographic shift will affect all regions, with low- and middle-income countries experiencing the largest and fastest growth in their older populations.