Multidimensional social support is associated with healthcare utilization among older Mexican adults

In this study, we aimed to estimate the association between social support and healthcare utilization among older Mexican adults. We conducted a prospective study with 4027 older adults aged 65-74 in rural areas in seven Mexican states. Data were collected at baseline (2007) and 14 months later (2009). Healthcare utilization was defined as number of visits to a physician for preventive or curative purposes in the last 6 months. Multidimensional social support was operationalized into two components: structural (living arrangements, marital status and network size) and functional (perceived availability of support; and perceived support across emotional, instrumental, economic and information domains). Mixed-effects regression models were used to estimate the probability of healthcare use and to examine the association between social support and the number of visits to a physician. Results showed that perceived availability of social support was associated with the probability of visits to a physician (OR 1.44; p < .01). Meanwhile, the following domains of functional component of social support were associated with the probability of visits to a physician: instrumental (OR 1.55; p < .01), economic (OR 1.19; p = .03) and informational (OR 1.39; p < .01); and also with the number of visits to a physician: instrumental (e  = 1.27; p < .01), economic (e  = 1.14; p = .01) and informational (e  = 1.12; p < .10). Our findings suggest that a significant association exists between social support, measured from a multidimensional viewpoint, and healthcare utilization, in which greater social support was related to a greater extent of use of health services.