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Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.

Objective: To examine geographic variations in health information use among older adults in the United States. Methods: We compared 15,531 adults (age 45 and older) across four U.S. regions. Descriptive analyses were conducted to assess health information seeking and use by year. The relationship be...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Mathis, Arlesia, Rooks, Ronica N., Wiltshire, Jacqueline
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: SAGE Publications 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7940770/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33748338
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2333721421997192
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author Mathis, Arlesia
Rooks, Ronica N.
Wiltshire, Jacqueline
author_facet Mathis, Arlesia
Rooks, Ronica N.
Wiltshire, Jacqueline
author_sort Mathis, Arlesia
collection PubMed
description Objective: To examine geographic variations in health information use among older adults in the United States. Methods: We compared 15,531 adults (age 45 and older) across four U.S. regions. Descriptive analyses were conducted to assess health information seeking and use by year. The relationship between health information seeking or use and regional changes were assessed using binomial logistic regression. Binomial models were adjusted by socio-demographics, chronic conditions, and health information sources. Magnitude and direction of relationships were assessed using adjusted odds ratios (aORs), 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and p-values. Results: Only the Northeast region showed increases in health information seeking (3.8%) and use (4.5%) among older adults. However adjusted models showed those living in the Northeast were 28% less likely to use health information to maintain their health and 32% less likely to use health information to treat illness. Conclusion: As a result of the current pandemic, older adults are facing a growing burden from health care expenses. Inability to gather and use health information for personal safety or self care can potentially increase inequalities in health, especially for older adults without personal health care providers.
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spelling pubmed-79407702021-03-18 Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S. Mathis, Arlesia Rooks, Ronica N. Wiltshire, Jacqueline Gerontol Geriatr Med Article Objective: To examine geographic variations in health information use among older adults in the United States. Methods: We compared 15,531 adults (age 45 and older) across four U.S. regions. Descriptive analyses were conducted to assess health information seeking and use by year. The relationship between health information seeking or use and regional changes were assessed using binomial logistic regression. Binomial models were adjusted by socio-demographics, chronic conditions, and health information sources. Magnitude and direction of relationships were assessed using adjusted odds ratios (aORs), 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and p-values. Results: Only the Northeast region showed increases in health information seeking (3.8%) and use (4.5%) among older adults. However adjusted models showed those living in the Northeast were 28% less likely to use health information to maintain their health and 32% less likely to use health information to treat illness. Conclusion: As a result of the current pandemic, older adults are facing a growing burden from health care expenses. Inability to gather and use health information for personal safety or self care can potentially increase inequalities in health, especially for older adults without personal health care providers. SAGE Publications 2021-03-04 /pmc/articles/PMC7940770/ /pubmed/33748338 http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2333721421997192 Text en © The Author(s) 2021 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
spellingShingle Article
Mathis, Arlesia
Rooks, Ronica N.
Wiltshire, Jacqueline
Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title_full Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title_fullStr Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title_full_unstemmed Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title_short Use of Health Information Varies by Region Among Older Adults in the U.S.
title_sort use of health information varies by region among older adults in the u.s.
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7940770/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33748338
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2333721421997192
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