Prevalence of Self-Treatment Practice and Related Factors Among Workers Aged 15 to 60 Years in Chi Linh Town, Hai Duong Province, Vietnam

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Self-Treatment among the Elderly-A Comparative Study between Empty and Non-Empty Nesters in Shandong, China

(1) Objectives: With an aging society in China, self-treatment now plays an important role in health care among older adults, but it can be problematic. This study aims to explore and compare the self-treatment behavior among empty and non-empty nesters. (2) Methods: Using a multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling method, a total of 4366 elderly people aged 60 and above from Shandong Province, China, were enrolled in this study. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the associated factors of self-treatment. (3) Results: The prevalence of self-treatment in empty nesters was significantly lower than that in non-empty ones (74.0% vs. 83.3%). Binary logistic regression analysis showed that higher educational level and poorer self-rated economic status were negatively associated with self-treatment in empty nesters, while unemployed and urban and rural residents' basic medical insurance were positively associated with self-treatment in non-empty ones. (4) Conclusions: The study indicated that empty nesters had lower likelihood of self-treatment than non-empty ones. Empty nesters with better socioeconomic status were more likely to use self-treatment; by contrast, non-empty nesters with relatively poorer socioeconomic status were more inclined to self-treatment. Targeted interventions should be developed to maximize the effectiveness of self-treatment and reduce health risks.

Characterize health and economic vulnerabilities of workers to control the emergence of COVID-19 in an industrial zone in Vietnam

The detection of first COVID-19 infected industrial worker in Vietnam on 13 April 2020 prompted timely effort to examine the health problems, behaviors, and health services access of industrial workers to inform effective and appropriate COVID-19 control measures, minimizing the risk of industrial sites becoming the next disease cluster. A search strategy involving search terms corresponding to 'health', 'industrial worker', and 'Vietnam' was applied to search for related papers published in English on Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Duplicates were removed, and relevant data were extracted from the full text of remaining publications. Results showed that underlying health problems, including respiratory system problems, were common among industrial workers. Many suffered occupational diseases and/or work-related injuries. Self-treatment (without medication) was the most used method when having health problems (by 28.2-51% of participants), followed by visiting commune health centers (24%) and self-medication (20.3%). Findings suggest a high risk of disease spreading among industrial workers and of them suffering more severe conditions when infected. Economic vulnerabilities may be the reason for workers' reluctance to taking time off work to attend hospital/clinic. These imply a need for involving local pharmacies, commune health centers, traditional health providers or village health collaborators as local health gatekeepers who are the first point of detecting and reporting of suspected COVID-19 cases, as well as a channel where accurate information regarding COVID-19, protective equipment, and intervention packages can be delivered. Having COVID-19 testing centers at or near industrial sites are also recommended.

Descriptions of self-treatment for the middle-aged and elderly in Shanxi, China

OBJECTIVES

Self-treatment is a widespread practice among patients with common symptoms and ailments; it is necessary to explore multiple aspects of it. Notably, there is little research into self-treatment among middle-aged and elderly people, who are more likely to fall ill. Our goals are to provide a comprehensive description of self-treatment and explore associated factors with insurance utilization and expenditures among the middle-aged and elderly populations in China.

METHODS

A survey was conducted in July 2016 in Shanxi, China. A stratified sampling scheme was applied to achieve representativeness. A total of 972 subjects were surveyed. Descriptive statistics, t- and Chi-squared tests, multivariate logistic regression, and multivariate linear regression were utilized.

RESULTS

In our study, 772 (79.4%) of the surveyed subjects self-treated during the previous twelve months. Among them, 253 (32.8%) used health insurance. Subjects' characteristics were associated with insurance utilization and expenditures for self-treatment. Total cost was positively associated with insurance utilization. The subjects with a junior high education (p-value < 0.001, aOR = 0.049) and senior high education (p-value = 0.020, aOR = 0.146) had a lower probability of using insurance. For both total costs and out-of-pocket costs, subjects who were 51 to 60 years old had lower costs. The subjects who were seriously sick and had a primary school education, as well as enterprise occupations, had higher costs. Self-treatment times were also positively associated with costs. Finally, it was found that subjects who didn't use insurance had lower total costs.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of self-treatment was high (79.4%). Some characteristics were associated with insurance utilization and expenditures in self-treatment. Our results may be helpful for policy interventions, which are needed to further improve the effectiveness of health insurance in China.