[Utilization of information concerning home welfare services for the elderly and degree of satisfaction]

A model was used to clarify the causal relationship between variables concerning utilization and degree of satisfaction towards information related to home welfare services for the elderly in order to obtain a guideline to assist in future provision of information concerning home welfare services. Subjects were selected by stratified random sampling from 2,200 elderly people (over 65 years old) in five districts of Hokkaido. Valid responses were obtained from 1,536 people (mean age: 72.1 years; gender composition: 58.2% men, 41.8% women). The items of the survey were: gender, age, educational background, family composition, income, health status (self-rated health, history of treatment at medical institutions), needs concerning information on home welfare services for the elderly, and degree of satisfaction with availability of information outlets and information services. The results of path analysis showed that: 1) the tertiary factors of age, educational background and income affect the secondary factor of needs concerning information on home welfare services for the elderly, 2) this secondary factor controls the primary factor of mass and personal media, and 3) the way of obtaining information affects the degree of satisfaction towards the information.