Education Level, Monthly Per-Capita Expenditure, and Healthy Aging in the Older Indonesian Population: The Indonesia Family Life Survey 2007 and 2014

Horizontal inequity trends of health care utilization in rural China after the medicine and healthcare system reform: based on longitudinal data from 2010 to 2018

BACKGROUND

To assess the effectiveness of China's medicine and health care reform in promoting equity in health care utilization among rural residents, it is necessary to analyze temporal trends in equity in health care utilization among rural residents in China. This study is the first to assess horizontal inequity trends in health care utilization among rural Chinese residents from 2010 to 2018 and provides evidence for improving government health policies.

METHODS

Longitudinal data obtained from China Family Panel Studies from 2010 to 2018 were used to determine trends in outpatient and inpatient utilization. Concentration index, concentration curve, and horizontal inequity index were calculated to measure inequalities. Decomposition analysis was applied to measure the contribution of need and non-need factors to the unfairness.

RESULTS

From 2010 to 2018, outpatient utilization among rural residents increased by 35.10%, while inpatient utilization increased by 80.68%. Concentration indices for health care utilization were negative in all years. In 2012, there was an increase in the concentration index for outpatient utilization (CI = -0.0219). The concentration index for inpatient utilization decreased from -0.0478 in 2010 to -0.0888 in 2018. Except for outpatient utilization in 2012 (HI = 0.0214), horizontal inequity indices for outpatient utilization were negative in all years. The horizontal inequity index for inpatient utilization was highest in 2010 (HI = -0.0068) and lowest in 2018 (HI = -0.0303). The contribution of need factors to the inequity exceeded 50% in all years.

CONCLUSIONS

Between 2010 and 2018, low-income groups in rural China used more health services. This seemingly pro-poor income-related inequality was due in large part to the greater health care need among low-income groups. Government policies aimed at increasing access to health services, particularly primary health care had helped to make health care utilization in rural China more equitable. It is necessary to design better health policies for disadvantaged groups to reduce future inequities in the use of health services by rural populations.

Longitudinal association between falls and motoric cognitive risk syndrome among community-dwelling older adults

The motoric cognitive risk (MCR) syndrome is a predementia syndrome associated with dementia and mortality risk. This longitudinal study aimed to investigated the longitudinal association between MCR and falls in older adults, including 3,720 participants in the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. A total of 482 participants (13.0%) met the MCR requirements at baseline. There were 226 incident cases of MCR (13.0%) throughout follow-up (duration: 4 years). Controlling for microsystem factors, a single fall (OR: 2.412, 95 % CI: 1.100-5.290; p < .05) was associated with incident MCR at baseline and to almost 2.0 times (HR: 2.021, 95 % CI: 1.031-3.961; p < .05) more inclined to develop MCR over time, compared to those without falls. These associations remained significant when meso/ exosystem factors and macrosystem factors were included in the analytic models. Falls may be useful in predicting MCR risk in the near future among Chinese older adults.

Assessing the income-related inequality in obesity among the elderly in China: A decomposition analysis

Background

Obesity among the elderly imposes a significant health and economic burden. The purpose of this study was to measure the obesity prevalence and income-related inequality among older adults in China and to explore the determinants of the inequity.

Methods

Data were obtained from 4,541 older adults (60 years and older) participating in the China Family Panel Study, 2018. Obesity was defined as body mass index (BMI) ≥28 kg/m². Normalized concentration index and concentration curve were calculated to measure the income-related inequality. Decomposition analysis was used to measure the contribution of each factor to the overall unfairness.

Results

The prevalence of obesity among the respondents was 7.99%. The 95% confidence interval for the overall prevalence was 7.20-8.78%. The normalized concentration index of obesity in the elderly was 0.075 (95% confidence interval: 0.047-0.103), indicating that obesity was more concentrated among the rich (p < 0.05). Socioeconomic factors contributed the most to the overall inequality (68.73%). Health behavior factors explained 16.38% of the observed income-related inequality in obesity among the elderly in China.

Conclusions

In 2018, obesity was more concentrated among the elderly with higher incomes in China. The pro-poor income-related inequality was mainly due to the higher socioeconomic status of higher-income older adults. Health behaviors and psychosocial factors could also exacerbate the inequality. To prevent the heavy burden of obesity on the health and finances of older adults, more attention should be paid to those who are financially better off, especially those who smoke and are physically inactive, while extroverted older adults also need to be focused on. For developing countries, concern needs to be given to the obesity of the wealthy elderly as a result of economic development.

Dietary patterns, skeletal muscle mass loss, and cardiovascular risk among elderly men: A preliminary cross-sectional study in Sichuan province

The present study investigated the correlation between dietary patterns (DPs) with skeletal muscle mass (SMM) and cardiovascular risks in Sichuan males aged ≥65-years-old. Three major DPs were extracted by principal component analysis: animal-based and processed food, traditional food, and ovo-lacto vegetarian food, which accounted for 14.83%, 14.36%, and 11.86% of the variance, respectively. Adjusted logistic regression analysis showed that animal-based and processed food DP was positively associated with overweight/obesity(OR: 3.25, 95% CI: 1.94-5.46) and dyslipidemia(OR: 3.53, 95% CI: 2.00-6.22). Traditional DP was negatively associated with overweight/obesity(OR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.36-0.72), dyslipidemia(OR: 0.50, 95% CI: 0.35-0.75), and high blood pressure(OR: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.38-0.77), but positively associated with decreased SMM (OR: 2.21, 95% CI: 1.36-3.16). Ovo-lacto vegetarian DP was negatively associated with dyslipidemia (OR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.39-0.81) and hyperuricemia (OR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.39-0.79), but positively associated with decreased SMM (OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 0.74-2.32). How to choose the best DP to control the cardiovascular risks and fight skeletal muscle loss needs further investigation in the future.

The Effect of Working Mother Status on Children’s Education Attainment: Evidence from Longitudinal Data

This study builds on the debate on whether mothers‘ employment in the early life of children bring positive or negative impact to children in later life. This is based on the fact that employment often result in reduced family time in which mother may not be able to take care of their children fully. This study estimated the effects of mothers’ employment status on children’s education in the short-term and in the long-term in 24 provinces in Indonesia. This study used data on children from three waves of the Indonesia Family Life Survey (IFLS): IFLS-3 (in 2000) aged 0–7 years, IFLS-4 (in 2007) aged 7–14 years, and IFLS-5 (in 2014) aged 14–21 years. The outcome variable was the children’s education and the variable of interest was the mother’s employment status. To overcome endogeneity, the analysis of the relationship between outcome and interest variables in this study was done by using the ordinary least square estimation (OLS) method and instrumental variables (IV). This study also used a cross-sectional design which estimated IFLS-4 (in 2007) and IFLS-5 (in 2014), separately. The main finding suggests that the mother’s employment status positively influenced children’s education both in the short- and long-term, as evidenced by the ordinary least square estimation (OLS) results. The instrumental variable (IV) estimate showed that decision-making was a strong instrument; and, it further revealed that mothers’ decision-making within the family affected their opportunity to work. This research could contribute to strengthening working mothers’ self-border and the concept of work-family facilitation in a family. It could also become a reference for stakeholders involved in the policy making to regulate policies which facilitate and support working mother to create ideal working environment. This condition is expected to supports children’s development as well as creating equity for working mothers in Indonesia.

The Determinants of Undiagnosed Hypertension Among Indonesian Adults: A Cross-sectional Study Based on the 2014-2015 Indonesia Family Life Survey

Objectives

This study investigated the determinants of undiagnosed hypertension among Indonesian adults.

Methods

This study involved an analysis of secondary data from the 2014 Indonesia Family Life Survey (IFLS) on 5914 Indonesian adults (≥40 years). The determinant variables examined in this cross-sectional study were education level, monthly per capita expenditures (PCE), whether the participant experienced headaches in the morning, and other general health variables. The outcome variable was undiagnosed hypertension, which was defined as participants with hypertension who had not received a hypertension diagnosis from a health professional and had never been prescribed medication for treating hypertension. The data were analyzed using logistic regression.

Results

A total of 3322 participants (56.2%) were found to have undiagnosed hypertension. The odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of undiagnosed hypertension were significantly higher among those who completed primary school or lower (OR, 1.60; 95% CI, 1.29 to 1.98), had low monthly PCE (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.13 to 1.43), did not report experiencing headaches in the morning (OR, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.76 to 2.21), and reported a general health status of healthy (OR, 2.05; 95% CI, 1.82 to 2.30) than those who had a higher education level, had high monthly PCE, experienced headaches in the morning, and were unhealthy.

Conclusions

Education level, monthly PCE, the experience of headaches in the morning, and general health status were associated with undiagnosed hypertension. The monitoring system for detecting undiagnosed hypertension cases must be strengthened. Health promotion is also necessary to reduce the prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension.

Socioeconomic position and healthy ageing: A systematic review of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies

BACKGROUND

The association between socioeconomic position (SEP) and health is well-established. However, the association between SEP and healthy ageing as a multidimensional construct is unclear.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed cross-sectional and longitudinal studies on the associations between SEP and multidimensional healthy ageing measures. Studies were identified from a systematic search across major electronic databases from inception to February 2021.

RESULTS

Fourthy-five articles met inclusion criteria (26 cross-sectional and 19 longitudinal studies). There was no consistency in method of operationalizing healthy ageing across studies, domains included in the healthy ageing measures, or in the definition and number of levels of SEP indicators. Overall, regardless of heterogeneity between studies, a positive association between educational level (85.0 % of studies) and income/wealth (81.4 % of studies) and healthy ageing was evident. Regarding occupational position, evidence from 11 studies was inconclusive. The number of studies including home ownership, parenteral SEP, or composite SEP scores was insufficient to be able to draw a conclusion.

CONCLUSIONS

There is evidence that socioeconomic inequalities, as assessed by educational level and income/wealth, are associated with healthy ageing. These findings, and the broader evidence base on SEP and healthy ageing, highlight the importance of addressing inequality through integrated health and social policies and strategies.