OUTPATIENT PHYSICAL THERAPY IN ICELAND: ARE WE FACING THE POPULATION AGING?

• Published in: Innovation in Aging
• Main Author: Arnadottir, S.A.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 2017
• Subjects: Abstracts; Iceland
• Online Access: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6185643/; https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igx004.3402

The purpose of this research was to explore if outpatient physical therapy (OPT) is facing the expanding population of older adults (65 years and older). The research was based on total population data from a national registry with information on all OPT clients reimbursed by Icelandic Health Insurances from 1999 to 2015 (N=172071); and general population data from the Statistics Iceland registry. Fisher’s exact or Chi-square tests were used to evaluate statistical significance. Results show that in 1999, older adults accounted for 18.9% of all OPT clients in Iceland while in 2015 they had increased to 24.6% (OR =1.40, 95%CI=1.34–1.45). This increase cannot be fully explained by aging of the Icelandic population, as the proportion of older adults increased from 11.6% to 13.9% from 1999 to 2015. In 1999, 62.4%, 32.4%, and 5.2% of older adults receiving OPT were 65–74, 75–84, and 85+ years, respectively, and 35.5% were men (population proportions in 1999 for same age-groups were: 56.3%, 33.2%, and 10.5%; and 45% were men). In 2015, 53.7%, 34.4%, and 11.9% of older adults receiving OPT were 65–74, 75–84, and 85+ years, respectively, and 37.8% were men (population proportions in 2015 for same age-groups were: 56.8%, 30.1%, and 13.1%; and 47.4% were men). Comparing older adults receiving OPT in 1999 to 2015 reveals, increasing proportion of clients being in older age-groups (p<.001) and rising proportion of men (p=.007). This case of Iceland presents a growth in older adults seeking OPT service and increased need for geriatric expertise in the field.