Social Status and Participation in Health Checks in Men and Women in Germany

Abstract

These findings indicate that socially disadvantaged persons are less likely to have check-ups than others. Efforts to increase check-up rates should take account of the demonstrated effects of income level and occupational status.

Determinants of health check attendance in adults: findings from the cross-sectional German Health Update (GEDA) study

“…One aim of general health checks is to lower the incidence of chronic diseases by reducing important risk factors for the purpose of primary prevention at the population level [2]. For secondary preventive purposes, health checks are aimed at detecting common diseases in an precursor or early stage in order to prevent the disease progression or chronification [3, 4]. An essential requirement for the success of such population-based prevention efforts is the participation of groups particularly vulnerable to chronic disease.…”

“…Besides anamnesis and a physical examination, laboratory tests of blood and urine are carried out followed by medical counselling. Previous studies have suggested that approximately one in two eligible men and women in Germany attend this health check within 2 years [4, 26, 27]. Existing evidence on socioeconomic differences in attendance behaviour is inconsistent because some studies have indicated socioeconomic disparities and others have not [4, 26, 28–30].…”

“…Previous studies have suggested that approximately one in two eligible men and women in Germany attend this health check within 2 years [4, 26, 27]. Existing evidence on socioeconomic differences in attendance behaviour is inconsistent because some studies have indicated socioeconomic disparities and others have not [4, 26, 28–30]. To the best of our knowledge, associations between behavioural risk factors for cardiovascular disease or diabetes and attendance at the statutory health check in the German general population have not been investigated yet.…”

Impact assessment of emission management strategies of the pharmaceuticals Metformin and Metoprolol to the aquatic environment using Bayesian networks

“…1 and 2; see also SI Section 2 for details concerning the expert interviews), experts pointed out the strong relevance of the setting-approach ("Setting-approach") to achieve a broad implementation of prevention (for a definition of the terms used in this section, please refer to the corresponding BN variables listed in Table 1). This would on the one hand allow for prevention to start at an early age, including for example children in school, and on the other hand it might help overcome socioeconomic differences, which have been reported to have a substantial impact on people's health status and their attitude towards prevention (see Section 2 in SI, as well as (Hoebel et al, 2013;Jordan and von der Lippe, 2013)). Strong emphasis was also given to regulatory measures, such as bans on tobacco and alcohol consumption or taxation of sugarand fat-containing foods.…”

Was tun wir für unsere Gesundheit? Gesundheitsverhalten in der zweiten Lebenshälfte

“…Mit Blick auf den Gesundheits-Check-Up fallen die Teilnahmequoten in höheren Altersgruppen ebenfalls größer aus (Saß et al 2009). So nahmen laut der GEDA-Studie rund 58 Prozent der Personen ab einem Alter von 65 Jahren an einem Gesundheits-Check-Up teil, während es in der Altersgruppe der 45-bis 54-Jährigen nur rund 49 Prozent waren (Hoebel, Richter, & Lampert 2013). Für die Krebsfrüherkennungs-untersuchungen zeichnet sich darüber hinaus ab, dass Personen mit niedriger Bildung diese seltener in Anspruch nehmen -vermutlich weil sie auch seltener Kenntnis über die Empfehlung der Krankenkassen zur Teilnahme an einer solchen Untersuchung haben (Starker & Saß 2013).…”