Study on the Health Status and Health Service Utilization of the Elderly of a Remote and Poor Village in a Mountainous Area in Jinzhai, Anhui

Rapid urbanization development significantly accelerates residents’ income in China, but there still exists a series of problems in rural areas, especially the health status of the rural elderly in the metropolitan suburb, a crucial matter worthy of attention. Regarding the rural elderly in a suburb of Guangzhou as a research object, this paper focuses on comparison of the health status and health service utilization differences between the national and local rural area, and qualitatively analyze and explain it by the cumulative disadvantage theory during the life course. By random sampling in the study group, 122 seniors from Mingxing village in Guangzhou are selected for structured face-to-face interviews. Data analysis of questionnaires (collected by trained investigators) shows that, except for self-care ability, the elderly in the village exhibit more serious hearing, vision, movement disorder, daily activity, and pain problems than the national average. Regarding mental health, the proportion of anxiety and depression symptoms in Mingxing village is 21%, both over the national countryside average. The two-week prevalence, chronic disease prevalence, and inpatient out of hospital are 78%, 85%, and 53%, respectively, which are still higher than the 2013 national rural average. Research demonstrates that the elderly mainly choose village clinics for outpatient treatment, county hospitals for inpatient treatment. The two-week visiting rate is 33%, lower than that in 2013, and the hospitalization rate is 15%, close to 2013 level. In conclusion, the health status and health service utilization of the elderly in Mingxing village in Guangzhou is generally lower than the national average level. Daily living habits, traditional notions and willingness for medical treatment are indispensable factors in affecting the elderly health. Economic status, living environment and education level continue to be the main factors in influencing the health service utilization for the elderly in Mingxing village.

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Effects of health literacy on health status and health service utilization amongst the elderly

Social Science & Medicine ◽

10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.01.003 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 66 (8) ◽

pp. 1809-1816 ◽

Cited By ~ 202

Author(s):

Young Ik Cho ◽

Shoou-Yih D. Lee ◽

Ahsan M. Arozullah ◽

Kathleen S. Crittenden

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Health Literacy ◽

Health Service ◽

Service Utilization ◽

Health Service Utilization ◽

The Elderly

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Quality of life, health status, and health service utilization related to a new measure of health literacy: FLIGHT/VIDAS

Patient Education and Counseling ◽

10.1016/j.pec.2014.05.005 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 96 (3) ◽

pp. 404-410 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Raymond L. Ownby ◽

Amarilis Acevedo ◽

Robin J. Jacobs ◽

Joshua Caballero ◽

Drenna Waldrop-Valverde

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Health Status ◽

Health Literacy ◽

Health Service ◽

Service Utilization ◽

Health Service Utilization

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Health Service Utilization and Expenditure of the Elderly in China

Asian Social Work and Policy Review ◽

10.1111/aswp.12085 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 162-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Jing Hu ◽

Chien-Chung Huang

Keyword(s):

Health Service ◽

Service Utilization ◽

Health Service Utilization ◽

The Elderly

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Health status and health service utilization in remote and mountainous areas in Vietnam

Health and Quality of Life Outcomes ◽

10.1186/s12955-016-0485-8 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 36

Author(s):

Bach Xuan Tran ◽

Long Hoang Nguyen ◽

Vuong Minh Nong ◽

Cuong Tat Nguyen

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Health Service ◽

Service Utilization ◽

Health Service Utilization ◽

Mountainous Areas

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Pattern of Outpatient Health Service Utilization by Older People in Iran

Salmand ◽

10.32598/sija.15.4.2921.1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 15 (4) ◽

pp. 410-427

Author(s):

Maryam Tajvar ◽

◽

Mehdi Yaseri ◽

Badriye Karami ◽

Mariya Mohammadi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Service ◽

Health Services ◽

Older People ◽

Service Utilization ◽

Health Service Utilization ◽

Health Planning ◽

The Elderly ◽

National Study ◽

Outpatient Services ◽

To Receive

Objectives: Considering the rapid growth of Iran’s elderly population with consequent increase in the costs of health services, it is necessary to be aware of the pattern of outpatient health service utilization, in the elderly for resource allocation and health planning. This study aims to determine the pattern of outpatient service utilization for the elderly in Iran and explore determinant factors. Methods & Materials: This is a cross-sectional study using secondary analysis method and the data from 2015 National Study of Health Service Utilization. Study population consists of older people aged ≥60 years. Of these, 8205 were selected as study samples. The data were collected using personal and household questionnaires collecting information on subjects’ need for, referral to, utilization from, and satisfaction with outpatient services. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors related to the need, referral, benefit, and satisfaction with the received outpatient services. Results: Out of 8205 participants, 3172 (39%) reported the need for outpatient services, of which 66% referred for services; of these, 98% (N=2060) benefited outpatient services. Females, older subjects, villagers, unmarried and illiterate subjects were more in need of outpatient services, but their referrals to receive the services were not more than those of other groups. Lack of basic insurance, supplementary insurance, and a personal care had a significant impact on reducing the number of subjects referred to receive outpatient services. Inability to pay treatment costs (30%), self-treatment (28%) and lack of proper insurance coverage (13%) were the most important reasons for not referring to receive outpatient services. The highest satisfaction was related to the behavior of physicians and medical staff and the lowest satisfaction was related to the cost of outpatient services. Conclusion: Although the use of outpatient health services should be based on the need for these services, the present study showed that the older people with higher socio-economic status had higher utilization from the services in Iran. Therefore, there is an inequality in access to outpatient services in the elderly. The reasons for not using outpatient services and dissatisfaction with these services should be seriously considered by health policy makers.

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