Self-Reported Health Conditions, Self-Rated Health Status and Health-Care Seeking Behavior of Older Elderly in an English-Speaking Caribbean Nation

ABSTRACT

Introduction:

Many studies have examined self-rated health status, functional capacity, lifestyle and living arrangements of elderly people (ages 60+ years); but none emerged in a literature search on self-rated health status, health-care seeking behavior, medical expenditure and self-reported health conditions of elderly people 80+ years old.

Aims:

This research, aims to provide information on the typology of acute and chronic diseases affecting the 80+ year population in Jamaica; ascertain whether there are shifts in the typology of dysfunctions over a 6-year period (2002-2007); examine the likely association between self-rated health status and self-reported dysfunctions; determine demographic differences in self-rated health status; examine likely relationship between self-rated illnesses and health-care seeking behavior; evaluate shifts in self-reported health conditions over a 6-year period, and calculate the elasticity of health-care seeking behavior, with reference to income and health insurance coverage.

Method:

The current study extracted a sub-sample of 566 and 159 elderly people 80+ years from the dataset of the Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions for 2002 and 2007 respectively.

Results:

Forty-nine percent of the samples reported an illness in 2007 and of those whom indicated an illness; the majority reported having chronic non-communicable conditions. Generally, the typologies of self-reported health conditions have remained the same. Diabetes mellitus had the greatest percentage of increase (550%) among those with chronic health conditions. Comparatively, 17% reported at least good health status and 39% indicated at least poor health status.

Conclusion:

The findings for this work can be the framework for policy intervention, understanding of the aged cohort and meeting the needs of the 80+ elderly population.

Keywords:

80+ year olds, Caribbean, developing nation, elderly people, health-care seeking behavior, health conditions, health status, health transition, public health.