Health services and eHealth from the perspective of older rural residents of Finnish Lapland

Abstract

This study explored from a life course perspective what kind of relationship older people taking part in the study had toward health services and eHealth. The study sought to answer the following questions: What kind of challenges, positive experiences, and expectations are related to health care in a remote area, according to the respondents? How do the respondents presently conceive and use eHealth? What kind of memories of past life and health services do the respondents report, and how do these express their distinct identities, history, and culture? The research data consisted of written accounts by older residents of Finnish Lapland. Nearly all the respondents reported challenges related to the availability, quality and costs of health services, although they balanced their accounts with positive experiences of well-functioning health services. The respondents' outlooks on eHealth and health services were diverse and built on their temporal self. In terms of the respondents' use of eHealth, only a few of the respondents reported that they presently used eHealth services. Finally, respondents’ memories of past life experiences and health services expressed their distinct identities and culture, as the cultural values of resilience and self-reliance were interpreted from the data.