Psychological Distress and Access to Care Among Midlife Women. (June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Johnson, Pamela Jo; Jou, Judy; Upchurch, Dawn M.
• Is Part Of: Journal of aging and health. Volume 32:Number 5/6(2020)
• Page Start: 317
• Page End: 327
• Publication Date: 2020-06
• Subjects: access to care -- mental health -- midlife; Older people -- Health and hygiene -- Periodicals; Geriatrics -- Periodicals; 618.97
• DOI: 10.1177/0898264318822367
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0898-2643

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study is to examine unmet health care needs among midlife women (ages 50-64 years) in the United States by level of psychological distress.Method: Using data for a nationally representative sample of midlife women ( N = 8, 838) from the 2015-2016 National Health Interview Survey, we estimated odds ratios of reasons for delayed care and types of care foregone by level of psychological distress—none, moderate (moderate psychological distress [MPD], and severe (severe psychological distress [SPD]).Findings: More than one in five midlife women had MPD (15.3%) or SPD (5.2%). Women with MPD or SPD had 2 to 5 times higher odds of delayed and 2 to 20 times higher odds of foregone care.Conclusions: Midlife women with psychological distress have poorer health than those with no distress, yet they are less likely to get needed health care. There is a missed window of opportunity to address mental health needs and manage comorbid chronic conditions to facilitate healthy aging.