The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice
Abstract Background In 2016, one in three older people in the UK were living alone. These patients often have complex health needs and require additional clinical and non-clinical support. This study aimed to analyse the association between living alone and health care utilisation in older patients....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2018-12-01
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| Series: | BMC Geriatrics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12877-018-0939-4 |
| _version_ | 1819198899867353088 |
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| author | Kathryn Dreyer Adam Steventon Rebecca Fisher Sarah R. Deeny |
| author_facet | Kathryn Dreyer Adam Steventon Rebecca Fisher Sarah R. Deeny |
| author_sort | Kathryn Dreyer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background In 2016, one in three older people in the UK were living alone. These patients often have complex health needs and require additional clinical and non-clinical support. This study aimed to analyse the association between living alone and health care utilisation in older patients. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 1447 patients over the age of 64, living in 1275 households who were registered at a large general practice in South East London. The utilisation of four different types of health care provision were examined in order to explore the impact of older patients living alone on health care utilisation. Results After adjusting for patient demographics and clinical characteristics, living alone was significantly associated with a higher probability of utilising emergency department and general practitioner services, with odds ratios of 1.50 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16 to 1.93) and 1.40 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.88) respectively. Conclusions Living alone has an impact on health care service utilisation for older patients. We show that general practice data can be used to identify older patients who are living alone, and general practitioners are in a unique position to identify those who could benefit from additional clinical and non-clinical support. Further research is needed to understand the mechanism driving higher utilisation for those patients who live alone. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T03:07:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-82a990e3ab9b45c98c3d650ef599e0b3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2318 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T03:07:47Z |
| publishDate | 2018-12-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Geriatrics |
| spelling | doaj.art-82a990e3ab9b45c98c3d650ef599e0b32022-12-21T18:02:18ZengBMCBMC Geriatrics1471-23182018-12-011811710.1186/s12877-018-0939-4The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practiceKathryn Dreyer0Adam Steventon1Rebecca Fisher2Sarah R. Deeny3The Health FoundationThe Health FoundationThe Health FoundationThe Health FoundationAbstract Background In 2016, one in three older people in the UK were living alone. These patients often have complex health needs and require additional clinical and non-clinical support. This study aimed to analyse the association between living alone and health care utilisation in older patients. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 1447 patients over the age of 64, living in 1275 households who were registered at a large general practice in South East London. The utilisation of four different types of health care provision were examined in order to explore the impact of older patients living alone on health care utilisation. Results After adjusting for patient demographics and clinical characteristics, living alone was significantly associated with a higher probability of utilising emergency department and general practitioner services, with odds ratios of 1.50 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16 to 1.93) and 1.40 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.88) respectively. Conclusions Living alone has an impact on health care service utilisation for older patients. We show that general practice data can be used to identify older patients who are living alone, and general practitioners are in a unique position to identify those who could benefit from additional clinical and non-clinical support. Further research is needed to understand the mechanism driving higher utilisation for those patients who live alone.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12877-018-0939-4HouseholdOlderUtilisationGeneral practiceEmergency careInpatient care |
| spellingShingle | Kathryn Dreyer Adam Steventon Rebecca Fisher Sarah R. Deeny The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice BMC Geriatrics Household Older Utilisation General practice Emergency care Inpatient care |
| title | The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice |
| title_full | The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice |
| title_fullStr | The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice |
| title_full_unstemmed | The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice |
| title_short | The association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults: a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a London general practice |
| title_sort | association between living alone and health care utilisation in older adults a retrospective cohort study of electronic health records from a london general practice |
| topic | Household Older Utilisation General practice Emergency care Inpatient care |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12877-018-0939-4 |
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