Abstract:

In Turkey, 12.4% of population lives in rural areas. In rural areas, the high rate of elderly population, low educational level, lack of social security, poverty and failure to access healthcare services difficulty are significant. When Health Statistics of Turkey are examined, it is observed that health problems such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension observed at higher rates in elderly population are more common in rural areas. This can be explained by both the demographic structure of rural population and insufficient access to health services in the rural area. Obstacles of healthcare in the rural area are lack of healthcare staff and healthcare services, barrier to access healthcare services, lack of access to means of transportation, telephone services, and social welfare services, unpredictable travel and weather conditions, procedures about healthcare services, failure to understand the needs of individuals coming from the rural area by healthcare professionals and their attitudes towards these individuals, and language and cultural barriers. Healthcare services for rural areas in Turkey are carried out by midwives or nurses working in the health houses as subject to family physicians in the very nearest region. Density of elderly population and complex health care needs of this group require nurses working in the rural area to be more competent. The aim of this review is to recognize the health needs of the elderly living in the rural areas, to evaluate the applications made to increase access to health services and to make suggestions for the elderly living in the rural areas in Turkey. For this purpose, the use of healthcare delivery models, mobile healthcare services, tele-health, and information and communication technologies in the rural area was examined. Projects prepared for elderly people living in rural area in Turkey and in the world; improving community based inclusive nursing services and health condition of people living in rural area, the project for supporting rural life in UK, ESAW (European Study of Adult Well-Being), National Tele-health Project for Scotland, OURSES (Offer of Rural Use of Services by Satellite), tele-medicine project in France, FW-MHIP (Western Australia's The Far West Mental Health Integration project), America's CCTH (The Care Coordination Home health), Germany's TEMPiS (Tele-medical Project for Integrative Stroke Care), America's IDEATel (The Informatics for Diabetes Education and Tele-medicine project) and Royal Doctor Service of Australia. Consequently, tele-health and ICT Technologies as well as different health service models are commonly used for especially disadvantaged elderly people in the rural area to access healthcare services.

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