Health care and public transportation use by poor and frail elderly people

This study presents survey data on low-income elderly people who attended daytime meal programs. The survey examined sociocultural and quality of life variables as they affected use of health care and transportation services. Most of the respondents self-reported their health status as poor or very poor, and more than half had no medical care during the preceding six months despite the presence of multiple physical symptoms. Social isolation from family or neighborhood support systems exacerbated problems with transportation, and most of the elderly people relied on public transportation to gain access to health services. Public transportation services posed additional barriers to health care use, among them fear.