© Matthew Horwood Photography
New research suggests that staying in school is associated with fewer hospital appointments in midlife.
A study published in the European Journal of Public Health examined the relationship between the educational records of approximately 7,000 people born in the 1950s in Aberdeen and their use of the NHS in midlife.
Researchers based at the Universities of Southampton, Swansea, and Aberdeen—supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)—found that, on average, children with higher academic ability who stayed longer in full-time education tended to use NHS services less in midlife.
Dr Sebastian Stannard, based at the University of Southampton and lead researcher on the study, said: “This is a fascinating delve into the lives of people from more than 70 years ago in one part of the UK. What we can do is compare the anonymous data from then with those people now to determine what influences their health and use of the NHS.
“It’s like getting access to a time capsule, a snapshot of people’s childhood and comparing it to the lives of those people now.”
Professor Rhiannon Owen of Swansea University added: “Population Data Science at Swansea University contributed to the design of the methodological approach that enabled us to identify the association between educational attainment in childhood and healthcare use in adulthood. These methods can be used to consolidate large amounts of information to help us uncover complex relationships, helping us to make the best use of data to address important and complex challenges in health and social care.”
The researchers hope that by examining anonymous historical data, they can identify factors that may influence people’s health today—particularly the burden of long-term conditions. This often includes the number of medications or NHS appointments individuals must manage as they age.
Professor Nisreen Alwan MBE, who leads research into Healthy Communities for NIHR ARC Wessex and is a co-author of the study, said: “This study confirms the association between educational attainment and health later in life. Focusing on education in early life is not only beneficial in the short term but can impact health in the long term.”
This research is part of the wider MELD-B project, which uses Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enhanced analysis of birth cohort data and electronic health records to identify key life stages and intervention points for preventing early-onset, burdensome multiple long-term conditions (MLTCs). The project is funded by the NIHR and supported by NIHR ARC Wessex.