Impact of pet ownership on elderly Australians' use of medical services: An analysis using Medicare data

Anthony F. Jorm; Patricia A. Jacomb; Helen Christensen; Scott Henderson; Ailsa E. Korten; Bryan Rodgers

doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.1997.tb123170.x

Impact of pet ownership on elderly Australians' use of medical services: An analysis using Medicare data

Anthony F. Jorm^*, Patricia A. Jacomb, Helen Christensen, Scott Henderson, Ailsa E. Korten, Bryan Rodgers

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

33 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objectives: To determine whether pet ownership by elderly people is associated with lower use of health services. Design: Survey of physical and mental health, and retrospective 12-month review of Medicare records of the number of general practitioner and specialist services. Participants and Setting: Elderly people living in Canberra (Australian Capital Territory) and Queanbeyan (New South Wales), surveyed in 1994 for the second stage of a larger longitudinal study. Results: Elderly pet owners did not differ from non-owners on any of the physical or mental health measures or in use of health services. Conclusion: Given the high use of health services by older people, our findings suggest that the claim that pet ownership leads to savings in health services should be viewed with caution.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	376-377
Number of pages	2
Journal	Medical Journal of Australia
Volume	166
Issue number	7
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.1997.tb123170.x
Publication status	Published - 1997

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title = "Impact of pet ownership on elderly Australians' use of medical services: An analysis using Medicare data",

abstract = "Objectives: To determine whether pet ownership by elderly people is associated with lower use of health services. Design: Survey of physical and mental health, and retrospective 12-month review of Medicare records of the number of general practitioner and specialist services. Participants and Setting: Elderly people living in Canberra (Australian Capital Territory) and Queanbeyan (New South Wales), surveyed in 1994 for the second stage of a larger longitudinal study. Results: Elderly pet owners did not differ from non-owners on any of the physical or mental health measures or in use of health services. Conclusion: Given the high use of health services by older people, our findings suggest that the claim that pet ownership leads to savings in health services should be viewed with caution.",

author = "Jorm, \{Anthony F.\} and Jacomb, \{Patricia A.\} and Helen Christensen and Scott Henderson and Korten, \{Ailsa E.\} and Bryan Rodgers",

note = "{\textcopyright}1997 The authors",

year = "1997",

doi = "10.5694/j.1326-5377.1997.tb123170.x",

language = "English",

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pages = "376--377",

journal = "Medical Journal of Australia",

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T1 - Impact of pet ownership on elderly Australians' use of medical services

T2 - An analysis using Medicare data

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AU - Jacomb, Patricia A.

AU - Christensen, Helen

AU - Henderson, Scott

AU - Korten, Ailsa E.

AU - Rodgers, Bryan

PY - 1997

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N2 - Objectives: To determine whether pet ownership by elderly people is associated with lower use of health services. Design: Survey of physical and mental health, and retrospective 12-month review of Medicare records of the number of general practitioner and specialist services. Participants and Setting: Elderly people living in Canberra (Australian Capital Territory) and Queanbeyan (New South Wales), surveyed in 1994 for the second stage of a larger longitudinal study. Results: Elderly pet owners did not differ from non-owners on any of the physical or mental health measures or in use of health services. Conclusion: Given the high use of health services by older people, our findings suggest that the claim that pet ownership leads to savings in health services should be viewed with caution.

AB - Objectives: To determine whether pet ownership by elderly people is associated with lower use of health services. Design: Survey of physical and mental health, and retrospective 12-month review of Medicare records of the number of general practitioner and specialist services. Participants and Setting: Elderly people living in Canberra (Australian Capital Territory) and Queanbeyan (New South Wales), surveyed in 1994 for the second stage of a larger longitudinal study. Results: Elderly pet owners did not differ from non-owners on any of the physical or mental health measures or in use of health services. Conclusion: Given the high use of health services by older people, our findings suggest that the claim that pet ownership leads to savings in health services should be viewed with caution.

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Impact of pet ownership on elderly Australians' use of medical services: An analysis using Medicare data

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