Research on clarification of anxiety factors for terminal stage home care considering local medical resources and estimation of the amount of burden associated with medical care

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K17329
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 58010:Medical management and medical sociology-related
• Research Institution: Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University
• Principal Investigator: Ogata Tomoaki 東北医科薬科大学, 医学部, 助教 (60633675)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 在宅療養の希望 / 在宅看取り / 費用負担 / 支払い意思額

Outline of Final Research Achievements

A web-based survey was conducted among residents in the Tohoku region. 9.8% of the respondents answered that they would be able to recuperate at home until the end of their lives, and 51.3% thought that they would not be able to recuperate at home until the end of their lives. The reason for this was “Too great an economic burden,” cited by 45.0% of the respondents. According to the results of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's “Survey on Attitudes toward Medical Treatment and Care in the Final Stage of Life” (R4), 13.7% of the respondents chose “Too much financial burden” as the reason for choosing to spend their final days outside of home. The percentage was 13.7%. It was clear that residents in the Tohoku region consider the financial burden of home care to be greater than the burden on their families.

Free Research Field

医療管理学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究における、自宅療養に対する許容可能な自己負担額の推計値は50000円／月であり、他の調査における実際の療養額と開きがあった。東北地方で在宅療養を普及させるには、家族の介護負担の不安をサービス普及によって解消することは重要であるが、住民に対して経済的な不安感を取り除く戦略が欠かせないことが示唆された。