Global trends in health services and health equity for older adults: Insights from a Bibliometric Review

Abstract

As populations age, it is crucial to understand the research landscape on health services and health equity for older adults to inform policy, practice, and future research. The growing number of elderly individuals has become a significant global public health issue, emphasizing the need to examine how research on care delivery and equitable access has evolved across various disciplines. Bibliographic records related to health services and health equity among older adults were sourced from the Scopus database. Data were analyzed using VOSviewer and the Bibliometrix package to identify thematic clusters, methodological patterns, and conceptual networks. Co-occurrence analysis was used to map keyword relationships, and thematic mapping was used to categorize the field's dominant, emerging, and declining topics. The co-occurrence network revealed a multidisciplinary structure anchored by demographic descriptors (e.g., human, female, male), which formed core hubs linked to thematic clusters in psychology, aging epidemiology, prevention, socioeconomics, and global health. The cumulative degree distribution indicated a scale-free architecture, suggesting that a small set of high-frequency terms dominates conceptual connections. Thematic mapping identified demographic terminology as central, while topics such as prevalence, risk factors, and mortality were classified as emerging or declining themes. Integrative concepts from psychology, qualitative research, and interview-based methods connected epidemiological and methodological perspectives, reflecting a gradual shift toward mixed-methods inquiry. This bibliometric review highlights a diverse research landscape that draws on public health, psychology, epidemiology, and social sciences to better understand health service delivery and equity among older adults. Demographic descriptors serve as conceptual anchors, reinforcing a core-periphery structure that supports both continuity and thematic growth. The field is increasingly emphasizing social determinants of health and experiential aspects of aging, with evidence of methodological diversification. These insights could guide future interdisciplinary collaborations, research priorities, and policies to promote equitable health services for aging populations.