Chinese older adults combine home self-care with delayed knee osteoarthritis help-seeking

A convergent mixed methods study assessed care-seeking behavior in 239 people with knee osteoarthritis and interviewed 10 participants about their experiences, revealing a combination of home self-management, informal assistance and hospital-based medical care. Researchers measured care-seeking behavior with the General Help Seeking Questionnaire and analyzed the responses statistically. They also conducted interviews with 10 members of the study population, then examined the interview material through content analysis.

The mixed methods design was intended to integrate quantitative assessments of help-seeking patterns with participants’ accounts of how they sought assistance and what shaped their choices. Three key areas emerged. Professional care-seeking primarily involved consulting physicians in hospitals.

Informal care-seeking took several forms, including assistance from family, drugstores, friends and neighbors, as well as the use of folk treatments. Despite these routes to support, most of the older participants initially preferred trying to self-heal at home rather than seeking external help. Delayed care-seeking was also identified as a common feature of the findings.

The results indicate that care for knee osteoarthritis among the studied population was not limited to formal medical consultation. Participants described a mixture of self-management, informal help and hospital-based care, and the interviews provided experiential context for the questionnaire results. The findings do not show that these approaches followed a fixed sequence for every participant, nor do they establish that home management or informal support was used before professional care in each case.

The study has a defined scope. Its quantitative component included 239 Chinese adults aged 60 or older with knee osteoarthritis, while the qualitative component comprised interviews with 10 participants. As a result, the findings describe care-seeking behavior in the studied population rather than establishing that all Chinese older adults with knee osteoarthritis respond similarly.

The authors concluded that professional and informal care-seeking coexist among the participants, while delayed help-seeking remains common, and said the results may inform health policies and the delivery of services for older people.

Subject of Research: Care-seeking behavior among Chinese older adults with knee osteoarthritis

Article Title: Assessment and experiences of care-seeking behavior among Chinese older persons with knee osteoarthritis: a mixed methods study

Article References: Xie, X., Kaewthummanukul, T., Mesukko, J., & Lirtmunlikaporn, S. (2026). Assessment and experiences of care-seeking behavior among Chinese older persons with knee osteoarthritis: a mixed methods study. BMC Health Services Research. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-026-15483-1

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12913-026-15483-1

Keywords: knee osteoarthritis, care-seeking behavior, older adults, China, self-management, informal care, delayed care, mixed methods, qualitative interviews, Assessment, experiences, care-seeking