Abstract
BACKGROUND: There is a large demand gap for home-based medical services. Understanding the characteristics of people in need of services can help provide relevant services more effectively and accurately. OBJECTIVE: To understand the health status categories and characteristics of home-based medical services for older patients with chronic diseases. METHODS: A cross-sectional research method was used to investigate the self-reported service needs and health status of 371 older patients with chronic diseases from four areas: environment, psychosocial, physical, and health-related behaviors. K-means cluster analysis was used to classify the population, and variance analysis was used to examine the basic characteristics of different categories of patients. RESULTS: Only 191 patients self-reported needing home-based medical care and were divided into three clusters: outstanding demand for psychological services, comprehensive health services in demand, and continuous optimization of health levels. There were statistically significant differences in the education level, economic status, health status, living conditions, and cohabitation status of the three clusters of patients (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The home-based medical service needs of community-dwelling older adults with chronic diseases may vary based on education level, economic status, and health status. How to provide appropriate services according to educational background, economic status and health status is a service topic that needs to be studied in the future.