We used a web-based mixed methods survey (HowsYourHealth – Frail) to explore the health of frail older (78% age 80 or older) adults enrolled in a home-based primary care program in Vancouver, Canada. Sixty per cent of eligible respondents participated, representing over one quarter (92/350, 26.2%) of all individuals receiving the service. Despite high levels of co-morbidity and functional dependence, 50 per cent rated their health as good, very good, or excellent. Adjusted odds ratios for positive self-rated health were 7.50, 95 per cent CI [1.09, 51.81] and 4.85, 95 per cent CI [1.02, 22.95] for absence of bothersome symptoms and being able to talk to family or friends respectively. Narrative responses to questions about end of life and living with illness are also described. Results suggest that greater focus on symptom management, and supporting social contact, may improve frail seniors’ health.

This article is based on a study that investigated factors associated with long-term care wait list placement in Ontario, Canada. We based the study’s analysis on Resident Assessment Instrument for Home Care (RAI-HC) data for 2014 in the North West Local Health Integration Network (LHIN). Our analysis quantified the contribution of three factors on the likelihood of wait list placement: (1) care recipient, (2) informal caregiver, and (3) formal system. We find that all three factors are significantly related to wait list placement. The results of this analysis could have implications for policies aimed at reducing the number of wait-listed individuals in the community.

This study aimed to (1) explore how palliative care in long-term care (LTC) addresses the tensions associated with caring for the living and dying within one care community, and (2) to inform how palliative care practices may be improved to better address the needs of all residents living and dying in LTC as well as those of the families and support staff. This article reports findings from 19 focus groups and 117 participants. Study findings reveal that LTC home staff, resident, and family perspectives of end-of-life comfort applied to those who were actively dying and to their families. Our findings further suggest that eliciting residents’ perceptions of end-of-life comfort, sharing information about a fellow resident’s death more personally, and ensuring that residents, families, and staff can constructively participate in providing comfort care to dying residents could extend the purview of end-of-life comfort and support expanded integration of palliative principles within LTC.

Existing cognitive health literature focuses on the perspectives of older adults with dementia. However, little is known about the ways in which healthy older adults without dementia understand their cognitive health. In rural communities, early dementia diagnosis may be impeded by numerous factors including transportation challenges, cultural obstacles, and inadequate access to health and support services.

Based on participant observation and two waves of 42 semi-structured interviews, this study examined healthy, rural older adults’ perceptions of cognitive health. By providing an innovative theoretical foundation informed by local perspectives and culture, findings reveal a complex and multidimensional view of cognitive health. Rural older adults described four key areas of cognitive health ranging from independence to social interaction. As policy makers, community leaders, and researchers work to address the cognitive health needs of the rural aging demographic, it is essential that they listen to the perspectives of rural older adults.

This study aimed to explore the impact of an awareness tool for relatives of older drivers (OSCARPA) on i) their interest, openness and knowledge, ii) changes of abilities required for safe driving, and iii) utilization of compensatory strategies. A pre-experimental design with pretest (T0) and post-test (T1) eight to ten weeks after the intervention was realized with 45 relatives in contact with an older driver of 65 years old or older and who was driving at least once a week. Overall, the results demonstrated that OSCARPA increased i) interest, openness and knowledge of relatives (p<0.001), as well as their perceptions of ii) changes of abilities of older drivers (p=0.02), and iii) their utilization of compensatory strategies (p=0.001). Future studies would be relevant to further evaluate and increase the effectiveness of OSCARPA.

Research on video games’ effect on cognition and behaviour has been extensive, yet little research has explored non-digital forms of game playing, especially among older adults. As part of a larger survey on game playing, 886 respondents (≥ age 55) filled out questionnaires about non-digital game play. The study aims were to determine perceived benefits of non-digital game play and to determine socio-demographic factors that might predict perceived benefits. Survey results indicate that non-digital game playing is social in nature and common (73% of respondents) among older adults. Older adults play for fun, but also to help maintain their cognition. Regression analyses indicated various socio-demographic factors – age, education, gender, and race – were independently associated with perceived benefits from game playing. The results thus emphasize the importance of non-digital game playing in this population and suggest that efforts to facilitate game playing may improve social interactions and quality of life.

This study examined the relationship between work dissatisfaction and sleep problems among Canadian adults in the latter half of life, as well as how gender and social contact moderate this relationship. Data were obtained from the Canadian General Social Survey, Cycle 21 (2007), which sampled adults aged 45 and older in 2007. Analyses focused on individuals with employment as their main activity. Analyses show that work dissatisfaction positively predicts trouble sleeping. There are no significant gender differences in this relationship. Social contact with friends buffers this relationship, but social contact with family does not, and buffering does not vary significantly between men and women. This research contributes to knowledge on sleep problems by showing that work dissatisfaction is adversely associated with sleep problems among Canadians in the latter half of life, but social contact with friends can weaken this deleterious relationship.

Population aging is an issue of mounting importance throughout the industrialized world. Concerns over labour force shortages have led to policies that prolong working life. Accordingly, present-day workforce participation patterns of older individuals are extensively varied. This study utilized the 2007 General Social Survey to examine factors associated with post-retirement paid work, focusing on the interaction between gender and relationship status, among Canadians aged 50 to 74 who had retired at least once. We find that although being in a relationship is associated with a higher likelihood of post-retirement work for men, the opposite is true for women. Our findings suggest that the gendered association between relationship status and post-retirement work results partly from the gendered associations between relationship status and one’s motivation for learning and community involvement, career orientation, and sense of independence. Gendered meanings of relationship status are thus revealed through analysis of post-retirement work.

Most research on stroke’s impact on couples has focused on the transition to caregiving/receiving. Despite considerable evidence that marriage is the primary source of support in the face of chronic conditions, little is known about what happens to marriage in the context of care after stroke. To address this gap, we undertook a qualitative grounded-theory study of 18 couples in which one partner had experienced a stroke. Findings revealed two interrelated themes of the couple processes: working out care, which involved discovering and addressing disruptions in day-to-day activities; and rethinking marriage, which involved determining the meaning of their relationship within the new context of care and disability. Three distinct types of marriages evolved from these processes: reconfirmed around their pre-stroke marriage; recalibrated around care; and a parallel relationship, “his” and “her” marriage. Our findings highlight the need to consider relationship dynamics in addition to knowledge about stroke and care.

In light of recent social pressures leading to a reimagining of the “Third Age” as a time of constant activity rather than repose and relaxation, this article explores the pressure on individuals to age “successfully” by engaging in physical activity in later life. Through semi-structured interviews with 15 retired or semi-retired gym-goers (eight women and seven men), the article examines how this call to increased activity impacts the ways active mid-life and older adults understand themselves and others. Drawing on Foucault’s understandings of the productive nature of power, we argue that those who perceive themselves as successfully heeding the call to active aging position themselves in contrast to inactive peers. Within a neoliberal framework, these participants self-identify as morally responsible citizens who, as a result of engagement in fitness activities, are authorized to survey and discipline the bodies of those “others” who will not or cannot engage in regular exercise.