Older adults find support through health care companions

The visitor chairs in America's health care clinics are getting put to good use, according to a new poll of older adults.

In the last year, 38% of people age 50 and over said another adult attended at least one of their health care appointments, including 4% who said someone attended a telehealth appointment with them. And 34% have accompanied another person over 50 to at least one appointment, including 4% who attended another older adult's telehealth visit, according to new findings from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging.

The vast majority of these older adults said that having someone at their health care appointment (referred to as a "health care companion") was helpful. In all, 92% of those who had a health care companion at an appointment said it was helpful. So did 99% of those who had acted as health care companion to someone else.

Health care companions helped ask questions of the doctor or other health care provider, and helped patients understand and follow up on the advice they received. Additional assistance included helping with transportation, providing emotional support, and meeting mobility needs.

The poll finds that 92% of all adults age 50 and over had at least one health care appointment in the last year. That suggests ample opportunity for more support from others during appointments, if older adults and health care providers understand the potential benefits.

The poll is based at the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, and supported by Michigan Medicine, U-M's academic medical center. The poll team also did a Michigan-focused analysis of poll data, with support from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund. Those findings are at https://michmed.org/Q9veZ.

As a primary care physician, my priority is to ensure that my patients and I use our time together well, and that they leave with the information and next steps they need to understand and manage their health conditions. So, if they want to have another person who can support them in the room or as part of a telehealth visit, I welcome it."

Jeffrey Kullgren, M.D., M.P.H., M.S., Poll director

Kullgren, who practices at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and is an associate professor of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School, adds, "When the health care companion is the patient's caregiver because of cognitive issues or complex medical conditions, this support can be absolutely vital."

But, he notes, the poll shows that 62% of older adults haven't opted to bring someone with them to an appointment in person or virtually in the past year.

The poll asked these older adults why they did not have a health care companion at any of their appointments and allowed them to choose multiple reasons. In all, 80% felt they didn't need help, and 20% preferred to go alone. But 11% said they didn't want to be a burden, and 6% said they had no one available to go with them.

The results, Kullgren says, suggest that health care clinics and systems could do more to invite patients to bring health care companions to in-person and telehealth appointments, and to optimize their care environments and digital tools so that companions can act as partners in the patient's care. Health care systems could also offer options to patients who do not have someone to accompany them, but want someone in the appointment with them, such as patient advocates and navigators.

Benefits of health care companions

Among those who brought a health care companion to an in-person or telehealth appointment, 83% said it made them comfortable sharing their health information, and 79% said it helped them follow through on the instructions their health care provider gave them. In all, 76% said it had a positive impact on the quality of care they received.

Those who had acted as a health care companion for another older adult were even more likely to feel their presence had made a difference, with 92% agreeing that it helped the person follow through on instructions and 89% agreeing that it positively impacted the quality of care the person received.

These findings suggest an untapped resource for helping improve how patients interact with the health care system, especially those with complex health needs."

Jeffrey Kullgren, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.

Who's bringing, or acting as, health care companions?

The most common health care companions were spouses or partners, cited by 71% of people who reported bringing someone to an appointment and 58% of those who went to someone else's appointment.

Adult children came second, with 20% of older adults who had brought someone to an appointment saying it was their adult child, and 28% of older adults who had gone to an appointment with another older adult saying they had accompanied their parent. Other relatives and friends also occasionally served as health care companions.

Women were less likely than men to have had someone accompany them to at least one appointment. In all, 35% of women over 50 had done so, compared with 42% of men. But women were more likely to have acted as a health care companion to another adult over 50, with 38% saying they'd done so, compared with 30% of men.

People over 50 with self-reported fair or poor physical health, and those with a disability that limits daily activities, were more likely to have had someone at their appointment. Those over 65 were more likely than those aged 50 to 64 to have had a health care companion.

The poll findings come from a nationally representative survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago for IHPI and administered online and via phone in February 2025 among 2,883 adults ages 50 to 97 across the U.S. The sample was subsequently weighted to reflect the U.S. population.