Elderly women show neither a shortage of strategies nor an overreliance on drugs in handling aging and in dealing with minor health problems.
Women 65 years old and over make up the fastest growing population segment in North America. They are, particularly among the underprivileged, known to be heavy consumers of prescribed and over-the-counter drugs. The objective of this study was to identify the role of medication in underprivileged elderly women's strategies for aging well and dealing with minor health problems. A qualitative study was conducted among 40 women aged 65 to 75. Results show that elderly women seldom mention resorting to medication to "age well" although they report using this strategy to deal with minor health problems. Overall, the elderly women mentioned a wide range of strategies to cope with aging and minor health problems, which suggests that they are well equipped to face the challenges of aging.
Voyer
Philippe
P
Faculty of Nursing, Laval University, Geriatric Research Group, Saint-Sacrement Hospital, Quebec, Canada. Philippe.Voyer@fsi.ulaval.ca
Laberge
Suzanne
S
Rail
Geneviève
G
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D004366:Nonprescription Drugs / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010593:Pharmaceutical Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011203:Poverty; D011792:Quebec
D004366:Nonprescription Drugs