Awareness and use of health services by the elderly.

Various factors, especially health status and income levels, have been viewed as the major factors impeding and/or promoting health service utilization. This research determined the extent to which a probability sample of Canadian senior citizens were correctly aware of the services provided by relevant health agencies and the extent to which income and health status factors were related to their use of those services. It was determined that awareness of health agencies influenced patterns of use more than other factors. Implications of the findings are discussed.