Volume 19, Issue 9 pp. 938-944
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

Older adults’ choices of first-contact care and related factors in Zhejiang and Qinghai Province, China

Xiaoqian Hu

Xiaoqian Hu

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

Xiaoqian Hu and Hao Zhang contributed equally to this work.Search for more papers by this author
Hao Zhang

Hao Zhang

Hangzhou Normal University, School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

Xiaoqian Hu and Hao Zhang contributed equally to this work.Search for more papers by this author
Xueshan Sun

Xueshan Sun

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Yuxuan Gu

Yuxuan Gu

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Xuemei Zhen

Xuemei Zhen

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Shuyan Gu

Shuyan Gu

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Yuanyuan Li

Yuanyuan Li

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Minzhuo Huang

Minzhuo Huang

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Jingming Wei

Jingming Wei

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

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Hengjin Dong

Corresponding Author

Hengjin Dong

Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

Correspondence

Professor Hengjin Dong PhD, Center for Health Policy Studies, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zijingang Campus, 866 Yuhangtang Rd, Hangzhou 310058, China.

Email: [email protected]

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First published: 24 July 2019
Citations: 10

Abstract

Aim

This study aimed to investigate older adults’ choices of first-contact care when they felt ill in Zhejiang and Qinghai province, and the related potential pathways.

Methods

Data were from a cross-sectional survey in Zhejiang and Qinghai. We firstly compared older adults’ choices of first-contact care in two provinces. Then, we applied structural equation modeling to explore pathways from socioeconomic status, accessibility and health status to older adults’ choices of first-contact care.

Results

The proportion of older adults who selected primary healthcare institutions as first-contact care in Qinghai was higher than that in Zhejiang. Socioeconomic status played an important role in the Zhejiang model through direct and indirect pathways. In the Qinghai model, accessibility to primary healthcare institutions was the leading cause for choosing preferred first-contact care.

Conclusions

A better understanding of complex pathways from factors to older adults’ choices of first-contact care was essential, which might inform priorities for further maximizing the utilization of primary care. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 938–944.

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