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Cleland, Jenny; Hutchinson, Claire; McBain, Candice; Khadka, Jyoti; Milte, Rachel; Cameron, Ian; Ratcliffe, Julie
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-07-2022-0046
This paper aims to assess the face validity to inform content validity of the Quality of Life – Aged Care Consumers (QOL-ACC), a new measure for quality assessment and economic evaluation in aged care.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with older adults (66–100 years) receiving aged care services at home (n = 31) and in residential care (n = 28). Participants provided feedback on draft items to take forward to the next stage of psychometric assessment. Items were removed according to several decision criteria: ambiguity, sensitive wording, not easy to answer and/or least preferred by participants.FindingsThe initial candidate set was reduced from 34 items to 15 items to include in the next stage of the QOL-ACC development alongside the preferred response category. The reduced set reflected the views of older adults, increasing the measure’s acceptability, reliability and relevance.Originality/valueQuality of life is a key person-centred quality indicator recommended by the recent Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. Responding to this policy reform objective, this study documents a key stage in the development of the QOL-ACC measure, a new measure designed to assess aged care specific quality of life.
van der Vlegel-Brouwer, Wilma; van der Vlegel, Marjolein; Duckworth, Jean Ellen; Partington, Hazel; de Jong, Anneke
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-03-2022-0018
This quantitative phase of a mixed-methods study aims to describe the effect of the Transitional Care Bridge (TCB) programme on functional decline, mortality, health-care utilisation and health outcomes compared to usual care in a regional hospital in the Netherlands.Design/methodology/approachIn a pre- and post-cohort study, patients aged ≥70 years, admitted to the hospital for ≥48 h and discharged home with an Identification of Seniors at Risk score of ≥2, were included. The TCB programme, started before discharge, encompassed six visits by the community nurse (CN). Data were obtained from the hospital registry and by three questionnaires over a three months period, addressing activities of daily living (ADL), self-rated health, self-rated quality of life and health-care utilisation.FindingsIn total, 100 patients were enrolled in this study, 50 patients in the TCB group and 50 patients in the usual care group. After three months, 36.7% was dependent on ADL in the TCB group compared to 47.1% in the usual care group. Mean number of visits by the CN in the TCB group was 3.8. Although the TCB group had a lower mortality, this study did not find any statistically significant differences in health outcomes and health-care utilisation.Research limitations/implicationsChallenges in the delivery of the programme may have influenced patient outcomes. More research is needed on implementation of evidence-based programmes in smaller research settings. A qualitative phase of the study needs to address these outcomes and explore the perspectives of health professionals and patients on the delivery of the programme.Originality/valueThis study provides valuable information on the transitional care programme in a smaller setting.
Córdoba Iñesta, Ana Isabel; Ortí Notari, Pilar; Gfellner, Barbara M.
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-06-2022-0036
Attitudes, experiences and knowledge about menopause are relevant, especially when menopause starts earlier than expected. This study aims to examine women who underwent this transition “early” and “on-time” according to these factors.Design/methodology/approachThe sample included 117 women, 69 with “on-time” and 48 with premature menopause. Participants completed three questionnaires.FindingsWomen with premature menopause had a better understanding of it but more negative attitudes and a higher incidence of physical and psychological symptoms, although they indicated greater feelings of control over their symptoms. Moreover, “early” menopause women appeared to exhibit greater anxiety.Practical implicationsResults underscore the need to inform women about menopause as a natural developmental process.Originality/valueThis paper shows the menopause as a difficult transition especially for women with early menopause.
van het Bolscher-Niehuis, Marian; Jansen-Kosterink, Stephanie; Vollenbroek-Hutten, Miriam
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-09-2021-0067
Efficacious self-management at older ages requires the ability to make an accurate appraisal of one’s current and future health situation. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how community living older adults, with different self-perceived health status, appraise their future health status and their future health-care and housing needs.Design/methodology/approachThe study population, 555 community living older adults, aged 65–75, completed a questionnaire for self-screening of their general health status.FindingsThe results show that over 70% of the older adults, even many of those who perceive their own health status to be “poor” or “fair” and those who are “frail”, do not expect deterioration in their physical or mental health nor extra health-care or housing needs within the next half year. In addition, a substantial part of the respondents, particularly those who perceive their general health as less favourable, tend to have a “wait-and-see” attitude and want to live their life day-to-day.Practical implicationsCommunity living older adults may not always be able or motivated to monitor their own health condition and prepare themselves for changing needs. Supporting older adults by motivating and teaching them to monitor their condition and overcome barriers to engage in pro-active coping can help older adults to manage the negative consequences of ageing while they have still sufficient resources available.Originality/valueThe findings of this study can help health-care professionals to tailor the support of older adults’ self-management.
Dumont, Renee; Sellon, Alicia M.; Newsham, Tina M.K.; Hollifield, Mary C.; Thomas, Alicia; Pate, Melannie; Fugate-Whitlock, Elizabeth
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-03-2023-0012
Many older adults engage in volunteer activities, drawing meaning and purpose through such efforts. Social distancing restrictions, put in place during Covid-19 surges to reduce the risk of transmission, disrupted older adult volunteers’ lives and volunteer experiences. Social distancing measures provide a unique opportunity to explore what happened when the choices around pausing or stopping volunteering were not entirely within the control of older adults. This paper aims to explore the experiences of older adult volunteers as they navigated uncertainties and made difficult decisions around balancing their safety and their desire to continue volunteering.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted interviews with 26 community-dwelling older adults, age 50+, who had engaged in volunteer activities for at least 1 h a week prior to the start of the pandemic. The interviews were conducted on the phone or via Zoom. The authors used thematic analysis to help us analyze the data and identify patterns from participants’ experiences.FindingsDespite the risk presented by Covid-19, most participants volunteered during the pandemic. They continued some or all of their previous activities with safety-related adjustments, with some seeking new or different opportunities. Participants’ discussions highlight the challenges of volunteering during the pandemic and the importance of engagement to their resiliency and subjective well-being.Originality/valueThis paper provides original contributions to understanding how and why older adults volunteered during the Covid-19 pandemic. The social distancing measures provide a novel opportunity to enrich our understanding of the meaningfulness and value of volunteerism to older adults’ lives and subjective well-being.
2023 Quality in Ageing and Older Adults
doi: 10.1108/qaoa-03-2022-0019
This study aims to explain the evaluation of a training programme for older adults to make them facilitators of a memory training project. Older adults were trained as facilitators to respond to the need to continue training memory and promote the active role of adults in the community.Design/methodology/approachThe Kirkpatrick model was used to comprehensively evaluate the training programme. The participants were 89 older adults from the city of Barcelona, with an average age of 73.1 years old. To evaluate the training programme, six instruments were administered, adapted to the four levels established in Kirkpatrick’s model.FindingsThe results obtained show that the programme to train facilitators enables older adults to become facilitators in a memory training project.Research limitations/implicationsTwo limitations have been identified. The first is to analyse the extent to which the participants learned from the facilitator’s memory training project. The second is the methodological improvement for future research on two issues: strengthening the validity of the instruments and incorporating a control group.Practical implicationsThe implications for practice, presented in this article, are twofold. One is the importance of lifelong learning as a resource for remaining healthy. Another implication is the active role of older adults in the community.Originality/valueThis research enables older adults to become involved in responding to their own needs such as memory training. In turn, it contributes to promoting active ageing and community participation.