An Integrated Model of Community Care for Older Adults: Design, Feasibility and Evaluation of Impact and Sustainability

This study was aimed to test the effects of a meridian cuffing exercise, the Healthy Beat Acupunch (HBA) regimen, on the functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning of community older adults. A single-blind, cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted. We randomly allocated eight community care centers to the intervention or control group and recruited 228 participants who completed the study (intervention: four centers, n = 111; control: four centers, n = 117). The intervention group underwent a 40-min session of HBA regimen 3 times per week for 6 months. Functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months of the intervention. The intervention group demonstrated significantly greater improvements in functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning than the control group between baseline and either 3 months or 6 months. We suggest that activities designed to promote health among community older adults include acupunch exercises.

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Educational Program for Promoting Collaboration Between Community Care Professionals and Convenience Stores

Journal of Applied Gerontology ◽

10.1177/0733464819871878 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 39 (7) ◽

pp. 760-769 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ayumi Igarashi ◽

Hiroshige Matsumoto ◽

Manami Takaoka ◽

Haruna Kugai ◽

Miho Suzuki ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Educational Program ◽

Social Care ◽

Community Care ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Convenience Store ◽

Convenience Stores ◽

Perceptions And Attitudes ◽

Questionnaire Surveys ◽

Community Dwelling Older Adults

Convenience stores play an important role in supporting community-dwelling older adults’ lives. This study aimed to describe the development of and to evaluate an educational program to promote collaboration between communities and convenience stores in Japan. We developed the educational program based on interviews of convenience store staff to encourage them to collaborate with health/social care professionals for helping older adults. We conducted pre- and post-program questionnaire surveys of 184 participants to evaluate the program. After the program, the total score for attitudes toward dementia ( p = .010) improved significantly among the convenience store staff. On the contrary, the score for “solidarity and proactiveness,” a subscale for sense of community, improved significantly among health/social care professionals ( p = .003). This educational program can have a significant effect on the perceptions and attitudes for supporting older adults, depending on the participants’ occupations. This educational program could foster community networks, leading to an age-friendly community.

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Characteristics of older adults living with HIV accessing home and community care services in British Columbia, Canada

AIDS Care ◽

10.1080/09540121.2020.1770673 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 33 (1) ◽

pp. 121-130

Author(s):

Katrina Koehn ◽

Heather Burgess ◽

Sharyle Lyndon ◽

Michelle Lu ◽

Monica Ye ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

British Columbia ◽

Community Care ◽

Care Services ◽

Home And Community Care ◽

Living With Hiv

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Social frailty: the importance of social and environmental factors in predicting frailty in older adults

British Journal of Community Nursing ◽

10.12968/bjcn.2019.24.10.486 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 (10) ◽

pp. 486-492

Author(s):

Karen Freer ◽

Sophie Louise Wallington

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Environmental Factors ◽

Health Professionals ◽

Community Care ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Causal Relationships ◽

Multiple Factors ◽

Common Definition

Frailty can have multifaceted contributors, including physical, psychological, social and environmental elements. There is a lack of clarity surrounding frailty as it lacks a universal common definition, multiple factors are attributed to frailty and no definitive assessment tool is available. The evidence suggests that there is a lack of research to indicate causal relationships between the various determinants of frailty in ageing individuals. This review discusses the important role that social and environmental factors play in predicting the risk of frailty in older adults, as well as discussing the various signs of frailty. Health professionals in primary and community care settings are well placed to prevent and identify social frailty in the persons they care for.

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Social Participation Among Older Adults Receiving Community Care Services

Journal of Applied Gerontology ◽

10.1177/0733464820938973 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 073346482093897

Author(s):

Joyce Siette ◽

Helen Berry ◽

Mikaela Jorgensen ◽

Lindsey Brett ◽

Andrew Georgiou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Social Participation ◽

Rural Women ◽

Service Use ◽

Community Care ◽

Care Service ◽

Geographical Location ◽

Aged Care ◽

Care Needs ◽

Care Services

Aged care services have the potential to support social participation for the growing number of adults aging at home, but little is known about the types of social activities older adults in community care are engaged in. We used cluster analysis to examine the current profiles of social participation across seven domains in 1,114 older Australians, and chi-square analyses to explore between-group differences in social participation and sociodemographic and community care service use. Two distinct participation profiles were identified: (a) connected, capable, older rural women and (b) isolated, high-needs, urban-dwelling men. The first group had higher levels of engagement across six social participation domains compared with the second group. Social participation among older adults receiving community care services varies by gender, age, individual care needs, and geographical location. More targeted service provision at both the individual and community levels may assist older adults to access social participation opportunities.

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Examining Consequences Related to Unmet Care Needs Across the Long-Term Care Continuum

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.296 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 90-90

Author(s):

Meghan Jenkins Morales ◽

Stephanie Robert

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Activities Of Daily Living ◽

Residential Care ◽

Informal Care ◽

Daily Living ◽

Long Term Care ◽

Community Care ◽

Term Care ◽

Care Arrangement

Abstract At some point in our lives, approximately 70% of us will need support to help with daily care. Without adequate assistance we may experience unmet care need consequences (UCNC) – such as skipping meals, going without clean clothes, or taking the wrong medication. This study examines the likelihood of experiencing UCNC related to gaps in assistance with activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) across long-term care arrangements: informal community care, paid community care, residential care, and nursing homes. We examine a sample of older adults receiving assistance in a care arrangement (N=2,499) from the nationally representative 2015 National Health and Aging Trends Study. Cross-sectional and longitudinal regression models, adjusting for differences in demographic and health/functioning characteristics, examine if type of care arrangement in 2015 is associated with UCNC in 2015 and change in UCNC by 2017. Holding all else constant, there were no significant differences in UCNC related to ADLs in 2015 across care arrangements. However, those receiving paid community care were more likely to experience UCNC related to IADLs (going without clean clothes, groceries, or a hot meal and making medication errors) compared to those receiving only informal care (OR=1.64, p<.05) or residential care (OR=2.19, p<.01). By 2017, paid care was also significantly associated with continued UCNC, but older adults in informal care arrangements were most likely to experience a new UCNC. Results suggest improving/expanding assistance with IADLs among community-dwelling older adults, and promoting equitable access to residential care, to reduce UCNC.

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