scholarly journals Using Smart Speakers in Low-Income Senior Housing to Enhance the Aging in Place Experience: Stakeholder Views

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 663-664
Author(s):  
Jane Chung ◽  
Jodi Winship ◽  
Katherine Falls ◽  
Pamela Parsons ◽  
Michael Bleich
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Adult ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Aging In Place ◽  
Comparative Approach ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Senior Housing ◽  
Target User ◽  
Voice Technology

Abstract Smart speakers provide a platform that can integrate smart home technology and/or safety devices within the home to enhance quality of life and independent living for older adults. However, few attempts to utilize this technology specifically within low-income senior housing (LISH) residents have been documented. Our purpose was to explore different stakeholder perceptions about the use of smart speakers to support aging in place in older adults living alone in LISH. Smart speakers were deployed in individual LISH apartments, equipped with a voice technology-based aging in place solution for the facility. A qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews using a constant comparative approach for emerging themes was conducted (n=10: older adult users, n=2: housing staff, n=2: voice technology developers). The three participant groups showed diverging perceptions in terms of benefits, uses, and stakeholder interests. Older adults found smart speakers useful in four main areas: assistance with daily tasks, feeling connected, safety measures, and emotional wellbeing. The two other groups showed a broader interest in the use of the smart speaker device, such as residential management tools and communication channels in addition to its potential use as safety and wellness tools. Older adults experienced significant difficulty setting up desired functions or finding instructions, which restricted utilization of the technology to a limited set of tasks. All stakeholder groups addressed a need for formal training or personalized tech support for older adult users. Findings indicate the importance of developing deployment strategies tailored to the needs and characteristics of the target user group.

Aging in Place of Vulnerable Older Adults: Person–Environment Fit Perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (11) ◽  
pp. 1327-1350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sojung Park ◽  
Yoonsun Han ◽  
BoRin Kim ◽  
Ruth E. Dunkle
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Research Effort ◽  
Aging In Place ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Senior Housing ◽  
Supportive Environment ◽  
Person Environment Fit ◽  
Poverty Status ◽  
The Impact

Based on the premise that the experience of aging in place is different for vulnerable subgroups of older adults compared with less vulnerable subgroups, we focus on low-income older adults as a vulnerable subgroup and senior housing as an alternative to a conventional, private home environment. Using the 2008 and 2010 waves of the Health Retirement Study, regression models determined the impact of person–environment (P-E) fit between poverty status and residence in senior housing on self-rated health. Consistent with the environmental docility hypothesis, findings show that, among low-income individuals, the supportive environment of senior housing plays a pronounced compensating role and may be a key to successful adaptation in aging. As the first research effort to empirically demonstrate the positive health effects of senior housing among socioeconomically vulnerable elders, our findings provide a much-needed theoretical and practical underpinning for policy-making efforts regarding vulnerable elders.

scholarly journals Challenges and Supports to Aging in Place in a Gentrifying Context

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 873-873
Author(s):  
Manish Kumar ◽  
Laura Richman
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Aging In Place ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Neighborhood Change ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Age In Place

Abstract Neighborhoods play a central role in healthy aging, with changes to neighborhoods having a profound impact on older adults’ ability to age in place. Using gentrification as an indicator of neighborhood change and applying the theoretical framework of the Environmental Press model (Lawton and Nahemow, 1973), this study examined the relationship between changing environments, affordable housing, and environmental attributes that support and hinder the health and well-being of older adults. A qualitative, case-study approach was used to interview low-income, majority Black older adults in a gentrifying area of Washington DC. 32 individuals (16 in non-profit and 16 in for-profit affordable housing) aged 55 and older participated in semi-structured interviews on perceptions of gentrification, neighborhood change, and challenges and supports to aging in place. Transcripts were then analyzed using the framework method of analysis. Although participants generally reported that gentrification improved their neighborhood’s built environment, many attributed it to a decline in social capital. Affordable housing provided an ability to age in place, though participants expressed uncertainty over their long-term ability to age in the context of continuing change. These findings suggest that while the physical changes accompanying gentrification may support older adults’ ability to age in place, its detrimental impact on social capital further increases their risk for social isolation. While affordable housing may enable older adults to age in place, fostering a greater sense of permanence and well-being will require additional policies that both increase accessibility to the physical amenities provided by gentrification and preserve older adults’ social capital.

scholarly journals Drivers of Broad-Spectrum Antibiotic Overuse across Diverse Hospital Contexts—A Qualitative Study of Prescribers in the UK, Sri Lanka and South Africa

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Carolyn Tarrant ◽  
Andrew M. Colman ◽  
David R. Jenkins ◽  
Edmund Chattoe-Brown ◽  
Nelun Perera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Antimicrobial Stewardship ◽  
Broad Spectrum ◽  
Low Income ◽  
System Level ◽  
Comparative Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Uk

Antimicrobial stewardship programs focus on reducing overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics (BSAs), primarily through interventions to change prescribing behavior. This study aims to identify multi-level influences on BSA overuse across diverse high and low income, and public and private, healthcare contexts. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 46 prescribers from hospitals in the UK, Sri Lanka, and South Africa, including public and private providers. Interviews explored decision making about prescribing BSAs, drivers of the use of BSAs, and benefits of BSAs to various stakeholders, and were analyzed using a constant comparative approach. Analysis identified drivers of BSA overuse at the individual, social and structural levels. Structural drivers of overuse varied significantly across contexts and included: system-level factors generating tensions with stewardship goals; limited material resources within hospitals; and patient poverty, lack of infrastructure and resources in local communities. Antimicrobial stewardship needs to encompass efforts to reduce the reliance on BSAs as a solution to context-specific structural conditions.

scholarly journals Designing Age-Friendly Communities: Exploring Qualitative Perspectives on Urban Green Spaces and Ageing in Two Indian Megacities

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1491
Author(s):  
Deepti Adlakha ◽  
Mina Chandra ◽  
Murali Krishna ◽  
Lee Smith ◽  
Mark A. Tully
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Healthy Ageing ◽  
World Health ◽  
Social Resilience ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Activity Promotion

The World Health Organization and the United Nations have increasingly acknowledged the importance of urban green space (UGS) for healthy ageing. However, low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like India with exponential ageing populations have inadequate UGS. This qualitative study examined the relationships between UGS and healthy ageing in two megacities in India. Participants were recruited using snowball sampling in New Delhi and Chennai and semi-structured interviews were conducted with consenting participants (N = 60, female = 51%; age > 60 years; fluent in English, Hindi, or Tamil). Interviews were recorded, transcribed, translated, and analysed using inductive and thematic analysis. Benefits of UGS included community building and social capital, improved health and social resilience, physical activity promotion, reduced exposure to noise, air pollution, and heat. Poorly maintained UGS and lack of safe, age-friendly pedestrian infrastructure were identified as barriers to health promotion in later life. Neighbourhood disorder and crime constrained older adults’ use of UGS in low-income neighbourhoods. This study underscores the role of UGS in the design of age-friendly communities in India. The findings highlight the benefits of UGS for older adults, particularly those living in socially disadvantaged or underserved communities, which often have least access to high-quality parks and green areas.

scholarly journals Domestic and International Perspectives on Financing Adult Education and Training

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 389-390
Author(s):  
Abigail Helsinger ◽  
Oksana Dikhtyar ◽  
Phyllis Cummins ◽  
Nytasia Hicks
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Low Income ◽  
The United States ◽  
Education And Training ◽  
Technological Advancement ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
And Training

Abstract Adult education and training (AET) over the life-course is necessary to participate in economic, social, and political activities in the time of globalization and technological advancement. However, little research has been done to identify mechanisms to fund AET opportunities among middle-aged and older adults from a comparative international perspective. Our study aimed to identify strategies to finance AET opportunities for middle-aged and older adults through an international lens, to help identify barriers and facilitators in effort to best support adult learners regardless of education background or socioeconomic characteristics. We carried out a descriptive qualitative study to facilitate an in-depth understanding of funding mechanisms available to adult learners in the selected countries, from the perspective of adult education and policy experts. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 61 international adult education experts from government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and education institutions. Our informants represented 10 countries including Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Data included at least one in-depth phone or web-based qualitative interview per informant in addition to information gathered from written materials (e.g., peer-reviewed publications and organizational reports). We identified three financing options that arose as themes: government-sponsored funding; employer-sponsored funding; and self-funding. We found that government-sponsored funding is especially important for low-skilled, low-income older adults for whom employer-sponsored or self-funding is not available. Our results have implications for lifelong AET policy changes, such as adaptations of successful AET funding programs across global communities.

scholarly journals Social Networks and Physical Activity in Senior Housing: A Pilot Feasibility Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 201-208
Author(s):  
Noah J. Webster ◽  
Toni C. Antonucci ◽  
Neil B. Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Strategic Partnership ◽  
Multiple Chronic Conditions ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Senior Housing ◽  
Physical Activity Interventions

Objective: Only 16% of people aged >65 years engage in recommended levels of physical activity, putting a vast major­ity at risk for multiple chronic conditions including heart disease. Physical activity is even lower among older adults with fewer economic resources. Research is needed to develop context-specific approaches to pair with physical activity interventions to increase effectiveness. In this pilot study, we examine social ties and physical activity levels of older adults living in a US Depart­ment of Housing and Urban Development subsidized senior housing community to test feasibility of a social network-based approach to physical activity interventions. This study is grounded in Social Contagion Theory and the Convoy Model of Social Relations, which argue health and health-related behaviors are facilitated through network ties.Methods: Data were collected through face-to-face interviews conducted over the course of three months (September- November 2018) with 46 residents living in a low-income senior housing community in southeast Michigan. Residents were asked about physical activity, people they know in the community, and their close social network composition.Results: Residents reported knowing, on average, six other residents and approxi­mately 28% of those in their close networks were also residents. Sociocentric network analysis identified two socially engaged (known by seven or more other residents) physically active residents, whereas ego-centric analysis identified four (60% or more of their network comprised residents).Conclusions: This study demonstrates potential feasibility of a strategic partnership that involves pairing social resources with physical activity interventions in afford­able senior housing. Multiple approaches, which need to be evaluated, exist to identify socially engaged residents.Ethn Dis. 2019;29(Suppl 1): 201-208; doi:10.18865/ ed.29.S1.201.

scholarly journals Engaging older adults as advocates for age-friendly, walkable communities: The Senior Change Makers Pilot Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina M Patch ◽  
Terry L Conway ◽  
Jacqueline Kerr ◽  
Elva M Arredondo ◽  
Susan Levy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Senior Housing ◽  
Advocacy Training ◽  
Advocacy Program ◽  
Transportation Activity

Abstract As the U.S. population ages, communities must adapt to help older adults thrive. Built environment features, like safe sidewalks and crosswalks, provide the foundation for age- and physical activity-friendly communities. Controlled studies are needed to evaluate advocacy training programs that instruct and support seniors to advocate for more walkable neighborhoods. The Senior Change Makers Pilot Study evaluated an advocacy program that taught seniors to evaluate pedestrian environments using the validated MAPS-Mini audit tool, identify barriers, and advocate for improvements. Participants (n = 50) were recruited from four low-income senior housing sites in San Diego, CA, which were randomly assigned to an 8-week advocacy program or physical activity (PA) comparison intervention. Evaluation included surveys, accelerometers to assess PA, and direct observation. Primary outcomes were seniors’ advocacy confidence and skills. Main analyses used repeated measures ANOVAs. Seniors in the advocacy condition (n = 17) increased their advocacy outcome efficacy (p = .03) and knowledge of resources (p = .04) more than seniors in the PA condition (n = 33). Most seniors in the advocacy condition completed a street audit (84%), submitted an advocacy request (79%), or made an advocacy presentation to city staff (58%). Environmental changes included repairs to sidewalks and crosswalks. City staff approved requests for lighting, curb cuts, and crosswalk markings. Seniors’ accelerometer-measured PA did not significantly increase, but self-reported transportation activity increased in the PA condition (p = .04). This study showed the potential of advocacy training to empower seniors to make communities more age- and activity-friendly.

scholarly journals Improvements of Disability Outcomes in CAPABLE Older Adults Differ by Financial Strain Status

2020 ◽  
pp. 073346482097555
Author(s):  
Minhui Liu ◽  
Qian-Li Xue ◽  
Laura Samuel ◽  
Laura N. Gitlin ◽  
Jack Guralnik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Aging In Place ◽  
Low Energy ◽  
Attention Control ◽  
Financial Strain ◽  
Home Based ◽  
Home Based Intervention ◽  
Strain Status

The Community Aging in Place–Advancing Better Living for Elders (CAPABLE) program reduces disability in low-income older adults. In this study, we used CAPABLE baseline and 5-month data to examine whether its effects in reducing activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental ADLs (IADLs) difficulties differed by participants’ financial strain status. At baseline, participants with financial strain were more likely to report higher scores on depression ( p < .001), have low energy ( p < .001), and usually feel tired ( p = .004) compared with participants without financial strain, but did not differ in ADL/IADL scores. Participants with financial strain benefited from the program in reducing ADL (relative risk [RR]: 0.61, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.43, 0.86) and IADL disabilities (RR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.54, 0.87), compared with those with financial strain receiving attention control. Individuals with financial strain benefited more from a home-based intervention on measures of disability than those without financial strain. Interventions that improve disability may be beneficial for financially strained older adults.

scholarly journals PRESIDENTIAL SYMPOSIUM: HARNESSING SOCIAL NETWORKS TO OPTIMIZE ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXTS FOR DIVERSE AGING EXPERIENCES

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S583-S583
Author(s):  
Philip A Rozario ◽  
Emily Greenfield ◽  
Nancy Kusmaul
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Disaster Preparedness ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Senior Housing

Abstract Social networks provide opportunities for engagement with others and structure the receipt and provision of emotional, instrumental, informational and appraisal support. Indeed scholars in this field have documented the importance of having strong social networks in influencing older adults’ well-being and quality of life. The three papers in this symposium draw on the convoy model of social relations and ecological model to examine and better understand the micro, mezzo, macro contexts that shape and influence how older people engage with and benefit from their networks in three areas: low-income senior housing communities, urban areas specifically targeting older Latinos with dementia, and disaster preparedness in micropolitan counties in eastern Iowa. The first paper, a cross-sectional study focusing on social connections in senior housing communities, examines levels of social networks, engagement, support and loneliness and their relationship with well-being outcomes. The second paper, a community-based participatory research project, reports an intervention that seeks to train natural helpers in a predominantly Latino urban neighborhood to identify and refer older Latinos with dementia to bilingual assessment services. The third paper, synthesizing findings from interventions targeting network building at the individual and state levels as well as a community-based network analysis, presents ways to strengthen networks at the mezzo and macro levels as well as environmental contexts that enable better disaster preparedness for community-based older adults. These papers will consider practice, policy and research implications in strengthening social networks and engagement to optimize older adults’ well-being in various settings.

“It’s My Time”: Older Adults’ Experiences and Perceived Benefits of Participation in an Intergenerational Rock Band

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-194
Author(s):  
Natalie Wlodarczyk
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Adult ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Perceived Benefits ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Rock Band ◽  
Ability Levels ◽  
Free Environment ◽  
First Time

Abstract The purpose of this qualitative content analysis was to explore the experiences and perceived benefits for older adult members who participated in an intergenerational rock band (IGRB) pairing older adults with college students. Participants (n = 29) were first-time older adult IGRB members who completed semi-structured interviews over the course of 5 years. Interviews were completed within 1 week of the conclusion of the semester-long participation in the IGRB. Each interview was digitally recorded, manually transcribed, and analyzed using an iterative approach to thematic analysis. Experiences and perceived benefits associated with participation in the IGRB for these older adults were encompassed by four themes: Staying Active, Wanting to Try Something New, Feeling Connected, and Seeking Positive Experiences. Findings indicate that an IGRB is an innovative, collaborative, and inclusive intergenerational music-making experience that leaves a multifaceted and overall positive impact on its older adult members. Themes suggest that older adults with musical backgrounds may enjoy an experience like an IGRB because it brings a level of familiarity coupled with the opportunity to try something new and different from their previous experiences with music. A key contribution of this study is the importance of promoting a judgment-free environment for singing that is inclusive of all ability levels. Developing a better understanding of older adults’ motivations for participating in an IGRB may help us to plan future music experiences for older adults and broaden our reach to the older adult community.

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