Abstract
Rural areas of the United States, compared with urban areas, exhibit a scarcity of resources and programs designed to provide health and supportive services to impaired elderly persons living in the community. Furthermore, recent research has indicated that informal, familial support for the rural elderly has become increasingly attenuated because of such factors as outmigration of younger family members. Under these circumstances, there is reason for concern that a lack of available supportive services to help impaired rural elderly persons remain in the community may in effect drive them prematurely into nursing homes. In Arizona we have found that, consistent with such a process, elderly nursing home patients in rural areas tend on the average to be significantly less impaired in most areas of functional capacity, and younger at time of entry, than elderly nursing home patients in urban areas. This pattern remains when various possible confounding effects are statistically controlled.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Brody S. J., Poulshock S. W., Masciocchi C. F. The family caring unit: a major consideration in the long-term support system. Gerontologist. 1978 Dec;18(6):556–561. doi: 10.1093/geront/18.6.556. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Coward R. T. Planning community services for the rural elderly: implications from research. Gerontologist. 1979 Jun;19(3):275–282. doi: 10.1093/geront/19.3.275. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hayslip B., Jr, Ritter M. L., Oltman R. M., McDonnell C. Home care services and the rural elderly. Gerontologist. 1980 Apr;20(2):192–199. doi: 10.1093/geront/20.2.192. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kaufert J. M., Green S., Dunt D. R., Corkhill R., Creese A. L., Locker D. Assessing functional status among elderly patients: a comparison of questionnaire and service provider ratings. Med Care. 1979 Aug;17(8):807–817. doi: 10.1097/00005650-197908000-00003. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Navarro V. The political and economic determinants of health and health care in rural America. Inquiry. 1976 Jun;13(2):111–121. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Nelson G. Social services to the urban and rural aged: the experience of area agencies on aging. Gerontologist. 1980 Apr;20(2):200–207. doi: 10.1093/geront/20.2.200. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Taietz P., Milton S. Rural-urban differences in the structure of services for the elderly in upstate New York counties. J Gerontol. 1979 May;34(3):429–437. doi: 10.1093/geronj/34.3.429. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]