Health and Care Experience Survey 2013/14 Volume 1: National Results

3 Demographic and Health Information From Survey Respondents

3.1 The patients who responded to the questionnaire were split as follows: 57 per cent were female and 43 per cent were male. These figures show an over representation of women compared to the population estimates 2012 from the National Records of Scotland^[5]. The estimates show that 52 per cent of the population aged 16 and over are female and 48 per cent are male.

3.2 The majority of respondents were either aged over 65 (38 per cent) or between 50 and 64 (32 per cent). Fewer respondents were aged between 35 and 49 (18 per cent) or between 16 and 34 (12 per cent). The older age groups are over represented in the survey compared to the 2012 population estimates, which show a smaller proportion of population in the age groups 65 and over (21 per cent) and 50-64 (24 per cent) based on population aged 16 and over.

3.3 People were asked to rate their health in general. Over half of respondents (62 per cent) rated their health as good. Almost a third (32 per cent) rated it as fair and 5 per cent rated it as bad.

3.4 Patients were asked if their day-to-day activities were limited because of a health problem or disability which had lasted, or was expected to last, at least 12 months.

• 65 per cent did not have any of their activities limited;
• 22 per cent responded their activities were limited a little;
• 13 per cent had their activities limited a lot.

3.5 People were asked how well in general they felt they were able to look after their own health. Most patients (94 per cent) responded they could look after their own health very well or quite well.

• 57 per cent of patients were able to look after their own health very well;
• 37 per cent of patients were able to look after their own health well;
• 6 per cent of patients couldn't look after their own health very well or at all well.

3.6 People were asked to rate their quality of life as a whole (based on the good and bad things that made up their quality of life). Over three quarters of patients (80 per cent) rated their quality of life as very good or good.

• 43 per cent of patients rated their quality of life as very good;
• 37 per cent of patients rated it as good;
• 17 per cent of patients rated it as alright / neither good or bad;
• 4 per cent of patients rated it as bad or very bad