What is it about?
People on low-incomes in the UK develop multiple long-term health conditions over 10 years earlier than affluent individuals. Financial diaries -new to public health- are used to explore the lived experiences of financially-vulnerable individuals, diagnosed with at least one long-term condition, living in two inner-city London Boroughs.
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Why is it important?
Findings show that these individuals live in a vicious circle: their health status prevents them from working, undermining their income. Their precarious and uncertain financial situation, sometimes combined with housing issues, increases stress and anxiety which, in turn, contributes to further deteriorate participants’ health accelerating the progression of multiple long-term conditions.
Perspectives
This article is part of our 'Finances and Health' (FinWell) programme of research. We think it could be thought provoking in two ways. First, it shows how financial diaries could become an important public health tool to better understand the role of personal finances in health outcomes. Secondly, it shows that we need to find ways to stop working in silos and integrate healthcare, public health, welfare and financial support to slow down the progression from one to many long-term health conditions.
Olga Biosca
Glasgow Caledonian University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Living on low-incomes with multiple long-term health conditions: A new method to explore the complex interaction between finance and health, PLoS ONE, June 2024, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0305827.
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