Reviewed By:
Barry J Goldlist, MD, FRCPC, FACP
Old, Female, and Rural
Editor: B. Jan McCulloch, Ph.D.
Haworth Press, Inc.
Binghamton, New York, 1998
ISBN 0789006715
This book, Old, Female, and Rural, has been co-published simultaneously as Journal of Women & Aging, volume 10, number 4, 1998. It consists of four research articles with a critical review. The topics covered include use of health care, economic realities, and family relationships. As well, the initial article gives a case study of a 90-year-old woman living in rural Minnesota.
Although the book seems overly specialized, much of the information is relevant to older women wherever they live. Even when the information is particular to the rural setting, comparisons to the urban setting are made which also convey very useful information to health care providers in cities.
The first article, the case study, particularly impressed me. The interviewee's view that use of formal support services implies a failure of informal supports also applies to many of my patients. The article on the economic circumstances of older women is not at all surprising, but the high prevalence of poverty in this group is nonetheless disturbing.
In summary, this book is clearly a 'niche' publication. It is a valuable publication for health care providers in rural areas, and provides interesting information for those of us practicing in urban areas. Although it is based on American demographics and research, I suspect that the general principles hold for Canada as well.
