Healthcare services and medication use among widowed partners of patients deceased due to cancer - results from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to quantify the effect of a cancer death on healthcare and medication use among widowed individuals (Widowed-Cancer), by comparing this population with partnered individuals and with widowed individuals whose partners were deceased due to cardiovascular diseases (Widowed-CVD). Methods Data were retrieved from the Sixth Wave of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe - SHARE, conducted in 2015, in 18 countries. Widowed-Cancer were matched by country, sex, age and educational level with currently partnered individuals (1:2; n = 901 and n = 1802, respectively) and with Widowed-CVD (1:1; n = 606 and n = 606, respectively). Adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were computed using logistic regression. Results The use of drugs for sleep problems (OR = 1.42, 95%CI:1.12-1.80) and anxiety or depression (OR = 1.56, 95%CI:1.20-2.03) was more common among Widowed-Cancer than in partnered individuals; a tendency towards higher odds of being hospitalised in the previous year was also observed in Widowed-Cancer (OR = 1.20, 95%CI:0.98-1.47). Among participants whose partners were deceased in 2015, Widowed-Cancer were more likely than Widowed-CVD to report ≥10 contacts with medical doctors or nurses in the previous year (OR = 3.32, 95%CI:1.20-9.24; P for interaction = .042) and a higher use of drugs for sleep problems (OR = 14.43, 95%CI:1.74-119.84; P for interaction = .027). Conclusion Widowed individuals whose partners were deceased due to cancer had a higher use of healthcare, which highlights the importance of improving the quality of end-of-life care, even during widowhood.