Morbidity Profile, Healthcare Utilization and Associated out of Pocket Expenditure on Health among Elderly Population of Lucknow District, Northern India

Abstract

Objective: To study and assess the morbidities occurring in an elderly person, the pattern of their healthcare utilization and the expenditure they incur during the process of receiving treatment. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out involving 404 elderly participants from both the urban and rural parts of Lucknow. The elderly participants were interviewed with the help of a pretested questionnaire.The data was collected on morbidity profile, healthcare utilization and associated expenditure by elderly. Results: Most common single chronic disease entity was hypertension (20.5%), and the most common group of morbidities were dental (18.8%), orthopedics (17.3%) and cardiovascular (11.8%) in that order. The proportion of those utilizing Inpatient care, out-patient care, Outpatient dental care, AYUSH care and self-medication was 32.9%, 62.9%, 20.7%, 36.4% and 35.6% respectively. Total mean out of pocket expenditure on health among participants from the urban and rural area was INR 7842.25 (SD 9067.97) and INR 6034.82 (SD 9566.45) respectively. Conclusion: The out of pocket expenditure among the elderly was much higher than per capita health expenditure of the country.