Previous research on activity patterns of the elderly has relied on survey and interview methods which have depended on special measures and the long term memory of the respondents. This paper examines the use of time budgets in studying changing activity patterns across the life span. The independent variables of interest in this analysu were age, sex, marital status, education, and whether or not the individual lives alone. The dependent variable was the activity patterns of the individual. Results indicate that only age, of the factors considered here, endured significance across all comparisons.

Increasingly, interprofessional teams are responsible for providing integrated health care services. Effective teams, however, are not the result of chance but require careful planning and ongoing attention to team processes. Based on a case study involving interviews, participant observation, and a survey, we identified key attributes for effective interprofessional working (IPW) within a home-based primary care (HBPC) setting. Recognizing the importance of a theoretical model that reflects the multidimensional nature of team effectiveness research, we employed the integrated team effectiveness model to analyze our findings. The results indicated that a shared vision, common goals, respect, and trust among team members – as well as processes for ongoing communication, effective leadership, and mechanisms for conflict resolution – are vital in the development of a high-functioning IPW team. The ambiguity and uncertainty surrounding the context of service provision (clients’ homes), as well the negotiation of external relationships in the HBPC field, require further investigation.

Several studies have demonstrated the efficacy of falls-prevention programs designed for community-dwelling seniors using randomized designs. However, little is known about the feasibility of implementing these programs under natural conditions and about the success of these programs when delivered under such conditions. The objectives of this paper are to (a) describe a multifactorial falls-prevention program (called Stand Up!) designed for independent community-dwelling seniors and (b) present the results of an analysis of the practicability of implementing this program in community-based settings. The program was implemented in the context of an effectiveness study in 10 community-based organizations in the Montreal metropolitan area. Data pertaining to the reach and delivery of the program as well as participation level show that a falls-prevention program addressing multiple risk factors can be successfully implemented in community-based settings.

Purpose: To assess the prevalence and strength of association of risk factors for falling in Canadian veterans of World War II and Korea and their caregivers.

Methods: Questionnaires were sent to addresses of 3,000 Canadian veterans (response rate = 70%). Risk factors for falls and the frequency of falls and injurious falls in the past 12 months were collected.

Results: Veterans had more risk factors than did caregivers, and more had fallen in the past year (39.8% vs. 29.7%). Risk factors in the logistic model for veterans included lower extremity disability (odds ratio = 1.98, 95% confidence interval 1.5–2.6); lower extremity weakness (OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.3–2.3); worse memory than peers (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.1–2.5); one or more visits to the family doctor in the past month (OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.2–2.0); and worse memory than 5 years ago (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.0–1.8).

Conclusions: Veterans appear more frail and prone to falling than their caregivers.

To explore the predictive value of cognitive and coping resources for problem- and emotion-focused coping with age, we collected data from community-dwelling adults between 20 and 90 years old. We hypothesized that age, perceived stress, self-efficacy, working-memory capacity, and mental flexibility were predictors of coping. We collected data using French versions of the Perceived Stress Scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale, and Way of Coping Checklist. Cognitive assessments comprised the WAIS III digit-span subtest and the Trail Making Test parts A and B. In multivariate analyses, neither working-memory nor mental-flexibility deficit predicted problem-focused coping. Age was found to predict only problem-focused coping. Self-efficacy predicted problem-focused coping, and perceived stress predicted emotion-focused coping. Our results confirmed that use of an emotion-focused coping style would not significantly change with age. Problem-focused coping increases with age and depends primarily on participants’ confidence in their ability to successfully solve problems (i.e., self-efficacy).

This study investigated the reciprocal relationship between parental caregiving and labour force participation to determine whether (1) caregiving related to subsequent employment; (2) employment related to subsequent caregiving; (3) caregiving and labour force participation had a reciprocal relationship across time; and (4) gender differences existed in these relationships. A cross-lagged panel design was applied with structural equation modeling. The study sample included adult children aged 51 or older with living parents or parents-in-law. No reciprocal relationship was found between caregiving and labour force participation, but gender differences were evident. Women caregivers in 2006 were less likely to be working in 2008, whereas employment status was not related to subsequent caregiving. In contrast, men working in 2008 were less likely to be caregiving in 2010, whereas caregiving was not related to subsequent employment status. Findings suggest that gender plays an important role in the relationship between caregiving and labour force participation.

Stress, perceived well-being, and coping behaviours were studied comparing a sample of aging Chinese immigrants with Anglos. The Chinese sample found growing old a more stressful experience, reported lower psychological well-being, depended more heavily on external and palliative coping strategies, and felt less effective in coping as compared to the Anglo counterparts. The finding supported the double jeopardy hypothesis of ethnic minority aging.

This paper presents psychometric data on a new, three-dimensional measure of self-efficacy for caregivers of older adults. Based on a sample of family caregivers of persons with dementia and a longitudinal study design (Time 1: N = 134; Time 2: N = 103), the RIS Eldercare Self-Efficacy Scale assesses relational self-efficacy, instrumental self-efficacy, and self-soothing efficacy. These three dimensions show strong internal consistency and moderate test-retest reliability. Their construct validity is demonstrated by their zero-order correlations with a set of standardized indicators of the caregivers' health and morale, personality characteristics, and personal resources. Multivariate analyses suggest that the three dimensions are more strongly trait- than state-linked. Use of this measure as a clinical screening tool and in intervention research is discussed.

Indigenous health research in Canada has a chequered past and has been identified as problematic and lacking in appropriate collaboration with Indigenous people. The Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, Chapter 9 describes ethical conduct of research regarding First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples. First Nations Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession (OCAP®) Principles highlight the necessity of Indigenous engagement and governance. To ensure that the aims and activities of the research being developed are in full and meaningful partnership with Indigenous peoples and communities, community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods provide a process in which full engagement is possible. Research utilizing secondary data sets, such as routinely collected health administrative data, should no longer be excluded from this approach. Our aim was to describe how our research team of academic researchers and a national Indigenous health organization adapted CBPR methods in a research project using previously collected data to examine end-of-life health care service delivery gaps for Indigenous people in Ontario. We describe the process of how we developed our research partnership and how grounding principles and Indigenous ways of knowing guided our work together. Through the adaptation of CBPR methods, our research partnership illustrates a process of engagement that can guide others hoping to conduct Indigenous health research using previously collected data. We also present a transparent research agreement negotiated equally by a national Indigenous health organization and research scientists, which can also be used as a framework for others wishing to establish similar research partnerships. Ensuring that Indigenous perspectives are central to and reflected in the research process is essential when using health administrative data.

Life expectancy has increased considerably throughout the world. In Bangladesh, life expectancy has increased from about 53 years in 1975 to 69 years in 2010. However, it is unknown whether the increase in life expectancy is simultaneously accompanied by an increase in disability-free life expectancy (DFLE). The purpose of the study described in this article was to explore the relationship between life expectancy and DFLE in the Rajshahi District of Bangladesh by examining the relationships between the Active Aging Index (AAI) and DFLE. The study findings suggest that urban, more-educated, elderly males are more active in all aspects of life and have longer DFLE. Females are found to outlive males but are more likely to live a greater part of their remaining life with disability. Positive correlations between the AAI and DFLE suggest that older adults could enjoy more DFLE by involving themselves in active aging activities.

Despite a rapid overall decline in poverty among older people since the 1970s, poverty among elderly immigrants is persistently high in Canada. Using data from the 2006 Canadian Census of Population, this article presents results of a study on the poverty of elderly immigrants in comparison to the Canadian-born elderly population. Results from logistic regression analysis suggest that a large portion of the higher poverty rates among elderly immigrants can be explained by the lack or inadequacy of state income support. Nevertheless, the high poverty levels among elderly immigrants are mitigated by financial assistance from their kin. This article concludes by highlighting the role of family support as a coping strategy for escaping poverty and by assessing two mechanisms of state intervention that could improve the economic well-being of elderly immigrants.

Using data from the Ontario Longitudinal Study of Aging (LSA) and data for aluminum and fluoride water concentration in areas where the LSA subjects resided, a preliminary analysis suggests that persons who show no indications of impaired mental functioning are more likely to have resided in areas where the aluminum concentrations (in drinking water) are relatively low and where fluoride concentrations (in drinking water) are relatively high. The difficulties in analyses of this type include the likelihood that many persons who are affected by impaired mental functioning do not respond to surveys, the identification of impaired mental functioning, and obtaining good exposure estimates of fluoride and aluminum drinking water concentrations.

This article outlines the results of two studies 1) a qualitative study of two groups of elderly homosexuals; 2) a four-year study of the life of 54 male homosexuals, aged between 50 and 80. The data offers an explanation for the fact that liberated gay communities are not seemingly willing to make room for the elderly homosexual. The explanation suggests: there is a significant cultural difference between young and old, particularly where privacy (“intimacy”) is concerned.

While the physical correlates of knee osteoarthritis are well documented, less well documented are aspects of psychological functioning that may affect overall health and functional status. This paper describes the findings of a cross-sectional analysis that examined the strength of the relationship between selected psychological factors and the walking ability of adults with knee joint osteoarthritis. The variables assessed were pain, depression, levels of self-efficacy for pain and other-symptoms management, walking endurance, walking speed, and perceived exertion when walking. The sample, including 57 persons with unilateral and 43 persons with bilateral radiographic and symptomatic knee osteoarthritis, mean age, 69.9 ± 1 years, underwent standard assessment procedures on a single test occasion using several validated questionnaires and a series of walking tests on level ground. Bivariate and multiple regression analyses revealed that (a) higher pain and other-symptoms self-efficacy scores were associated with lower levels of pain (r = −0.29, −0.20.), perceived exertion during a walking task (r = −0.29, −0.31), and depression scores (r = −0.46, −0.54) (p < 0.001); (b) subjects with higher levels of self-efficacy for managing symptoms other than pain also recorded faster and fast speed walking velocities than those with lower self-efficacy scores (r = 0.30, 0.31) (p < 0.001); (c) self-efficacy for pain was the strongest predictor of pain intensity, and self-efficacy for symptom management was the strongest predictor of perceived exertion during walking, depression, and pain self-efficacy. Although no cause–effect relationship can be deduced from a cross-sectional analysis, these data imply that efforts to heighten self-efficacy for pain and other-symptoms management may influence the affective status, function, and effort-related perceptions of people with knee osteoarthritis quite significantly.

An intervention trial with regular physical activity was carried out to test the hypothesis that walking speed is related to the level of cardiovascular fitness (maximal oxygen uptake). Earlier research has demonstrated that when VO2 max is held constant in a multiple regression analysis the association between walking speed and age (29–65 y) is eliminated. To describe the association between self-selected speeds of walking, and level of cardiovascular fitness, 63 men age 60 to 65 were studied before and after a 1 year program of exercise training. VO2 max was determined on a motor driven treadmill. A test of self-selected walking pace was administered over a 240 m indoor course. The men were asked to walk at 3 paces considered by the subjects to be rather slow, normal, and fast, respectively. They were randomly assigned with stratification for white and blue collar occupation to a program of exercise training (n = 33) or control (n = 27). The training program consisted of walking or jogging for 30 min three times per week for one year. After the training program the exercise group increased their VO2 max (9.5%) and their normal walking speed (1.29 to 1.43 m.s−1) significantly compared to the controls. A program of exercise endurance training will result in an increase in the speed of self-selected pace.

Although there are reports that the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) should be adapted to older adults, the standard version of the instrument is consistently used with this population. Bouchard, Gauthier, Ivers and Paradis (1996) have adapted a French version of the STAI for a population of older adults and found one item with extremely low item-remainder correlation. In Study 1 (N = 57), alternative formulations of item 24 were assessed to examine if the low item-remainder correlation was related to problems in translation that could become apparent in a sample of older adults. Study 2 (N= 188) was conducted in order to replicate the findings of Study 1 and assess the factor structure of the instrument. In Study 3, 46 older adults completed the instrument on two occasions with a 35-day interval to assess test-retest reliability. Our results suggest that: (a) item 24 should be removed from the trait anxiety scale and be replaced by the mean of the other anxiety-present items; (b) the instrument has a four-factor structure similar to what is found with the standard version of the STAI in nonelderly samples; and (c) both subscales are highly stable.

Access to long-term nursing homes by French-speaking seniors in minority situations is a very real problem. However, few studies have been conducted on this subject. We wanted to better understand this issue in New Brunswick while taking into account the language aspect. In this article, we will present the problem based on different issues encountered by Francophones in minority situations and by giving an overview of the studies conducted on French-speaking seniors in minority situations. We will then address the issue related to the rights of French-speaking senior to receive services in French in nursing homes by analyzing briefly the province’s legal requirements. Furthermore, we will present the regulatory framework of nursing homes in New Brunswick. Finally, we will provide a geographic analysis of existing New Brunswick nursing homes while taking into account the language aspect, the levels of service and the distribution of French-speaking seniors within the territory.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce, define and test a theoretical model which explains elderly people's use of urban shopping centres as places for social exchange. We suggest that elderly people use shopping centres to satisfy social and leisure are individual or predisposing variables and environmental or encouraging variables which differentiate elderly people who engage in this activity. Using a secondary data analysis of a probability sample of 300 non-institutionalized elderly people in Montreal, we found that mallingering is an activity that 67 per cent of this sample do in three shopping centres in this city. Predisposing variables such as age, gender, education and feelings of loneliness, along with encouraging variables such as design and ambiance of the centre are related to this activity. Based on these findings, we suggest that this model contributes to our understanding of the leisure activities of non-institutionalized elderly people.

À l'aide de données provenant d'une cohorte de 1 352 personnes àgées demeurant dans la communauté et ayant visité l'urgence d'un centre hospitalier, nous avons étudié la prévalence (avant la visite à l'urgence) et l'incidence (pendant une période de suivi de six mois) de l'utilisation des services communautaires de santé ainsi que les facteurs reliés à l'utilisation de ces services. Les données ont été recueillies lors d'entrevues à l'urgence et au téléphone lors du suivi. Avant la visite à l'urgence, 59,8 pour cent des patients avaient au moins une incapacité en regard aux activités de la vie quotidienne (AVQ); 16,8 pour cent des patients ayant une incapacité recevaient des services communautaires. Parmi les patients qui ne recevaient pas ces services auparavant, 45,4 pour cent ont développé une nouvelle incapacité pour les AVQ pendant les trois mois suivant la visite à l'urgence; et 23,5 pour cent des patients avec une nouvelle incapacité ont commencé à recevoir des services communautaires. En contrôlant pour l'ampleur des besoms, les patients admis à l'hôpital se sont avérés être plus susceptibles de recevoir des services pendant la période de suivi que ceux ayant reçu leur congé de l'urgence. Il existe probablement de nombreux besoins non comblés pour les services communautaires dans cette population.

This study presents the validation of the French Canadian version (PACLSAC-F) of the Pain Assessment Checklist for Seniors with Limited Ability to Communicate (PACSLAC). Unlike the published validation of the English version of the PACSLAC, which was validated retrospectively, the French version was validated prospectively. The PACSLAC-F was completed by nurses working in long-term care facilities after observing 86 seniors, with severe cognitive impairment, in calm, painful or distressing but non-painful situations. The test-retest and inter-observer reliability, the internal consistency, and the discriminent validity were found to be satisfactory. To evaluate the convergent validity with the DOLOPLUS-2 and the clinical relevance of the PACSLAC, it was also completed by nurses during their work shift, with 26 additional patients, for three days per week during a period of four weeks. These results encourage us to test the PACSLAC in a comprehensive program of pain management targeting this population.