Table 2.
Characteristics of Participants Who Had Not Appointed a Healthcare Agent
| Characteristic | Could not think of someone to be healthcare agent (n=17) | Could think of someone to be healthcare agent (n=152) | p-value* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, n (%) | |||
| 55–64 years | 4 (23.5) | 74 (49.0) | 0.09 |
| 65–74 years | 10 (58.8) | 51 (33.8) | |
| ≥75 years | 3 (17.6) | 26 (17.2) | |
| Female, n (%) | 11 (64.7) | 86 (56.6) | 0.35 |
| Non-White | 5 (29.4) | 48 (31.6) | 0.55 |
| Hispanic | 0 (0) | 5 (3.3) | 0.59 |
| Education, n (%) | |||
| High school or less | 4 (23.5) | 50 (32.9) | 0.31 |
| Some college or more | 13 (76.5) | 102 (67.1) | |
| Marital status, n (%) | |||
| Married or partnered | 0 (0) | 79 (52.0) | <0.001 |
| Divorced, widowed, or single | 17 (100) | 73 (48.0) | |
| Lives alone, n (%) | 12 (70.6) | 48 (31.6) | 0.002 |
| Self-rated health, n (%) | |||
| Poor or fair | 8 (47.1) | 25 (16.4) | 0.006 |
| Good, very good, or excellent | 9 (52.9) | 127 (83.6) | |
| Quality of life, n (%) | |||
| Worst possible, poor, or fair | 8 (47.1) | 22 (14.5) | 0.004 |
| Good | 6 (35.3) | 87 (57.2) | |
| Best possible | 3 (17.6) | 43 (28.3) | |
| Depressed, n (%)† | 5 (31.3) | 9 (6.1) | 0.001 |
| Finances, n (%) | |||
| Not enough or just enough money | 12 (70.6) | 51 (33.6) | 0.004 |
| Money left over every month | 5 (29.4) | 101 (66.4) | |
*Fisher’s exact tests for all comparisons except age and quality of life, where Pearson chi-square tests were used
†Participants were screened using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2, with scores ≥3 suggesting that depression is likely