Abstract
(1) Objectives: With an aging society in China, self-treatment now plays an important role in health care among older adults, but it can be problematic. This study aims to explore and compare the self-treatment behavior among empty and non-empty nesters. (2) Methods: Using a multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling method, a total of 4366 elderly people aged 60 and above from Shandong Province, China, were enrolled in this study. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the associated factors of self-treatment. (3) Results: The prevalence of self-treatment in empty nesters was significantly lower than that in non-empty ones (74.0% vs. 83.3%). Binary logistic regression analysis showed that higher educational level and poorer self-rated economic status were negatively associated with self-treatment in empty nesters, while unemployed and urban and rural residents’ basic medical insurance were positively associated with self-treatment in non-empty ones. (4) Conclusions: The study indicated that empty nesters had lower likelihood of self-treatment than non-empty ones. Empty nesters with better socioeconomic status were more likely to use self-treatment; by contrast, non-empty nesters with relatively poorer socioeconomic status were more inclined to self-treatment. Targeted interventions should be developed to maximize the effectiveness of self-treatment and reduce health risks.
Highlights
The number of older population over 60 years was 250 million at the end of 2018, accounting for17.9% of the total population in China
Our results showed that the prevalence of self-treatment in empty nesters was lower than that in non-empty ones (74.0% vs. 83.3%), and the difference was significant after adjusting variables for social-economic and health-related factors
A study indicated that more than 4.2 million poor patients with serious or chronic diseases have been treated due to the health poverty alleviation project [26]. Another important explanation for non-empty nesters having a higher prevalence of self-treatment than empty ones is that the family caregivers are often equipped with some knowledge and common skills of healthcare tasks due to the increased frailty of the elderly, and the non-empty nesters would usually deal with their discomfort with the support of their adult children [20].The results suggests that it is important to strengthen health education for elderly and family caregivers to make them understand the risks of improper self-treatment
Summary
17.9% of the total population in China. People above the age of 65 are projected to represent 26% of. A major feature of China’s population aging is the transition of elderly household patterns. Living with children is the typical Chinese traditional family pattern for older people [3]. Due to many factors, such as the one-child parents entering the elderly, the imbalance of economic development, the acceleration of urbanization, and population migration, the proportion of elders living alone or living with their spouse continues to rise.
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