[A sociologic study of health care accessibility in an urban milieu in Tunis]. / Une étude sociologique de l'accès aux soins en milieu urbain à Tunis.

In developing countries, the study of access to medical care reveals the inequality of health coverage. In rural areas, the two main limiting factors are the lack of health services and the difficulty of access, especially distance. But the relevant factors in urban areas have been little studied. In Mellassine, which is the largest slum of Tunis, we studied the behaviour of 400 under-4 children's mothers in relation to health care. The following factors proved relevant: sex of the child, size of the family, father's profession, level of education, material resources; distance, cost and quality of reception of health services; finally the cultural pattern, particularly the representation of children disease by the mothers. Such an approach allows a reflection to reduce the inequality of access to medical care.