A FAMILY GP has warned that Irish men may end up paying less attention to their health as a result of the economic downturn because many who are made unemployed will no longer have access to employment-based medical schemes.
Dr Mark Rowe said many men currently enjoy ready access to healthcare through employment-based medical schemes. However, growing unemployment means fewer would have access to such schemes – while they also become more concerned with financial matters.
Dr Rowe said he was concerned that men, who were already generally more reluctant than women to visit a doctor, may ignore early warning signs about their health at a time when they were facing more immediate issues arising from the recession.
“There may be a temptation for newly unemployed men in particular to focus on the more pressing matter of how they and their families are going to survive financially rather than protecting their health,” according to Dr Rowe, who has a practice at Lismore Park in Waterford city.
“In addition, there are specific medical conditions, such as stress, that men are likely to be susceptible to in the current economic climate as even those who are still in employment face growing uncertainty about the future.
“There is also reason for concern about how well men will maintain exercise and fitness regimes in the downturn while their diet may also regress with negative consequences for their health,” he added.
A graduate of University College Dublin medical school, Dr Rowe was speaking in advance of the launch of his medical guide, The Men's Health Book, which "deliberately steers clear of overly-scientific medical terminology".
The 350-page paperback, which is published by Blackhall Publishing, covers some of the most common illnesses occurring in men including cancer, addiction, heart conditions, infertility, impotence, cholesterol, depression and stress.
With Irish men having almost five years’ less average life expectancy than Irish women, 76.8 vs 81.6 years, Dr Rowe said it was more important than ever that men overcame their reluctance to seek medical attention if they noticed anything unusual about their bodies.
“In over 14 years of general practice in Waterford, I have been struck again and again by how often male patients have presented later than would have been desirable with various conditions,” he said
All royalties from the book’s sales are being donated to the Marie Keating Foundation.