Abstract

Introduction
In Jamaica, rural poverty is twice that of urban poverty with about 50 percentage points of elderly residing in rural zones. Poverty is not only a measure of the economic reality; it is also a critical driver of the health challenge being experienced by this vulnerable group.
Objectives
The present study aims to 1) evaluate health of rural elderly, 2) determine factors that influence selfrated health status of the rural aged, 3) determine factors of self-reported illness among rural aged in Jamaica, and 4) examine the changing patterns of diseases of the rural aged Jamaicans over a 5-year period. Methods
This paper utilizes a cross sectional probability survey design from the Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions (JSLC) dataset. JSLC is a modification of the World Bank Living Standard Survey. Two of the JSLC were used for this research, 2002 and 2007. This research extracted rural aged (60+ year olds) from each year, 2,010 and 404 respectively. Descriptive statistics provide pertinent information on the socio-demographics characteristics of the sampled respondents. Logistic regressions were used to established health models, and a p value <5% was used to determine statistical significance.
Findings
In 2002, 23.2% of rural elderly were below the poverty line. This rose by 6.5% in 2007; wherein at least 66% sought medical care; 27.3% had poor self-rated health status, and self-reported illness was 39.4% in 2002 and this rose by 14.0% in 2007 over 2002. Of those who reported an illness, 75.4% had chronic conditions with 44.0% had hypertension.
Conclusion
The findings which emerged from this inquiry offer more to the literature on elderly, health status,
ageing and health and rural health studies.