Abstract
As in much of the world, the elderly population in Vietnam is growing rapidly with two-thirds of them currently living in rural areas. Besides limited access to quality healthcare services, they also have unique health profiles and needs due to various factors, including the highly skewed sex ratio of more women residing in rural areas. However, the relationship between gender, health-seeking behaviors, and health outcomes in this under-served population has not been well characterized. This study sought to explore the associations of gender with health-related quality of life and health-seeking behavior among the elderly in Soc Son, a rural district of Hanoi, Vietnam. A cross-sectional design was used; elderly individuals were surveyed across the domains of socioeconomic information, health status, and healthcare service utilization. We found that overall, women had poorer health and quality of life even though gender difference did not appear to significantly influence their levels of health services utilization. A greater understanding of the systemic, sociocultural, and psychological factors underlying such differences may help better inform future healthcare service delivery strategies targeting this growing population in rural areas.
Highlights
The global elderly population is growing rapidly, with the world gaining one million older persons each month [1]
We aimed to explore the associations of gender with health-related quality of life, including current health status and history of illnesses, and health-seeking behaviors among the elderly in a rural district in Vietnam
Hypertension and stroke were more prevalent among men, as seen in both studies conducted in Vietnam and throughout Asia [19,20,21,22]. As these findings corroborate disease patterns observed elsewhere, they may be able to be addressed by policies and interventions similar to existing ones that have been demonstrated effectiveness. It appears necessaryto investigate the differential occupational hazards that elderly women and men living in rural areas may face, and the impact that such hazards could have on health: This study showed that occupation differed significantly by gender; of note, most men surveyed were retired, whilemost elderly women surveyed worked as farmers
Summary
The global elderly population is growing rapidly, with the world gaining one million older persons each month [1]. The aged dependency ratio (ratio of non-working age individuals to working age), which was previously stable between 1979 and 2009 at approximately one person aged 60+ per 10 working-age people, has recently decreased to 1:9 with projections that it will drop to 1:3.5 by 2049 [2]. As a result, it has become increasingly difficult for the national government to adequately fund public services for the elderly [2]. All individuals aged 80 and older qualify for government-sponsored health insurance, but among those 60–79 years old, only poor individuals without family support and individuals with disabilities receive assistance [2]
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