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Journal articles on the topic 'Fulfilling ageing'
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1
Ekta, Sharma, Mishra Pramod Kumar, Sharma Indumati, and Gautam Vinod Kumar. "RASAYANA CHIKITSA: A COMPLETE THERAPY TO PREVENT AGEING." International Ayurvedic Medical Journal 8, no. 8 (August 18, 2020): 4237–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.46607/iamj3308082020.
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Ayurveda is the ancient system of medicine in the world. Ayurveda has two basic principles i.e. mainte-nance of healthy individuals and cure from the diseases. Rasayana Chikitsa is one of the eight branches of Ayurveda which aims at achieving a long and healthy life with fulfilling both of the principles. Rasayana is the term given to special herbs which decreases the ageing process, increases the life longevity, increases the mental as well as physical strength and destroys the disease process. The main purpose of Rasayana Chikitsa is to impede the aging process and delay the degenerative process in the body. It involves clinical effects like Vaya Sthapaka, Ayushya, Medhya, Balya and Jara Vyadhi Nashaka effects and work as im-mune stimulant, antioxidant, adoptogenic and anti-stress agent etc.
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Panico, Francesco, Gennaro Cordasco, Carl Vogel, Luigi Trojano, and Anna Esposito. "Ethical issues in assistive ambient living technologies for ageing well." Multimedia Tools and Applications 79, no. 47-48 (July 17, 2020): 36077–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11042-020-09313-7.
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AbstractAssistive Ambient Living (AAL) in ageing refers to any device used to support ageing related psychological and physical changes aimed at improving seniors’ quality of life and reducing caregivers’ burdens. The diffusion of these devices opens the ethical issues related to their use in the human personal space. This is particularly relevant when AAL technologies are devoted to the ageing population that exhibits special bio-psycho-social aspects and needs. In spite of this, relatively little research has focused on ethical issues that emerge from AAL technologies. The present article addresses ethical issues emerging when AAL technologies are implemented for assisting the elderly population and is aimed at raising awareness of these aspects among healthcare providers. The overall conclusion encourages a person-oriented approach when designing healthcare facilities. This process must be fulfilled in compliance with the general principles of ethics and individual nature of the person devoted to. This perspective will develop new research paradigms, paving the way for fulfilling essential ethical principles in the development of future generations of personalized AAL devices to support ageing people living independently at their home.
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McFarquhar, T., and A. Bowling. "Psychological Well-being and Active Ageing: Maintaining Quality of Life in Older Age." European Psychiatry 24, S1 (January 2009): 1. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0924-9338(09)71335-5.
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Aims:To investigate the relationship between psychological well-being and measures of active ageing in a British sample of older people. Active ageing is the process of optimising opportunities for health, participation and security to embrace quality of life as people age.Methods:A national survey of quality of life and psychological well-being including 999 people aged ≥65 years living in private households in Britain commenced in 1999. in the most recent follow up of 2007, 323 survivors aged ≥72 years completed a postal survey regarding their quality of life and specifically the process of active ageing. A subset of 42 participants was also interviewed qualitatively in 2008 about their perceptions of active ageing. Psychological well-being at baseline was measured using the 12 item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12) and correlated with measures of active ageing at baseline and in subsequent follow ups. Measures of active ageing included number and frequency of leisure and social activities, physical ability and access to support networks.Results:A significant positive relationship between psychological well being and measures of active ageing was found at baseline (p< 0.05). Measure of active ageing in 2007 were also correlated with psychological well-being at baseline (p< 0.05). Qualitative interviews in 2008 provided additional insights into this relationship.Conclusions:Results suggesting a strong relationship between psychological health and ageing actively. Good psychological health may allow the elderly to maintain an active and fulfilling lifestyle and reduce isolation and dependence, which in turn may protect against some aspects of poor mental health.
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Lucas, S. "The marketing of retirement communities and retiree lifestyles." Geographica Helvetica 59, no. 4 (December 31, 2004): 261–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/gh-59-261-2004.
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Abstract. Retirement communities offer the promise of a fulfilling life in old age. Purposefully planned and constructed with the intention of encouraging consumption through the promotion of successful ageing and a space in which to enjoy it, the success of retirement communities rests partially on the images used in attendant advertisements. Using content analysis to analyze the text of informational brochures provided to potential residents, this paper examines the images used to sell retirement communities. The sentences are classified into one of three categories: successful ageing, physical attributes of the community and old age related decline. The results show the overwhelming use of positive images to describe retirement community living and a denial of old age related physical decline. Most of the sentences in the brochures relate to the availability and plethora of leisure amenities in retirement communities, or endorse the idea of successful ageing by describing residents as active, healthy individuals with money to spend.
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PRINCIPI, ANDREA, SARA SANTINI, MARCO SOCCI, DEBORAH SMEATON, KEVIN E. CAHILL, SANDRA VEGERIS, and HELEN BARNES. "Retirement plans and active ageing: perspectives in three countries." Ageing and Society 38, no. 1 (August 22, 2016): 56–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x16000866.
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ABSTRACTThis study explores whether the plans of older workers on the cusp of retirement are in line with the active ageing agenda set by policy makers in Europe. The study was carried out in Italy, England, and the United States of America (USA). A total of 133 older workers who planned to retire within the next 10–12 months were interviewed (55 in England, 40 in Italy and 38 in the USA) between May 2014 and early 2015 using common semi-structured questions. Active Ageing Index dimensions were used to gauge the orientation of older people towards their retirement. The results of the study suggest that, with some differences, retirement plans of interviewees were substantially consistent with the active ageing perspective. However, some challenges were highlighted, including the need for governments to do more to promote genuine freedom of choice in relation to leaving the labour market, and to provide greater support for informal family carers. Findings also pointed to the need to measure active ageing in connection with individual wellbeing,e.g.by including indicators of leisure activities and by considering the re-weighting of employment and informal care dimensions. Companies could also provide more support during the retirement transition, with opportunities for maintained social connection with former colleagues, and help in making and fulfilling retirement plans.
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Meijering, Louise, Bettina Van Hoven, and Sepideh Yousefzadeh. "“I think I'm better at it myself”: the Capability Approach and Being Independent in Later Life." Research on Ageing and Social Policy 7, no. 1 (January 30, 2019): 229. http://dx.doi.org/10.17583/rasp.2019.3678.
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Current policies on ageing in the global north emphasize that ‘ageing well’ is an individual responsibility, and tend to undervalue the social, economic and cultural context of ageing. The capability approach is well-suited to address the interplay between context and individual in later life. In this article, we therefore use the capability approach to explore how individual capabilities and contextual opportunities and restrictions contribute to being independent in later life. A qualitative methodology was adopted and we conducted in-depth interviews with 32 adults aged 65 and older, who lived independently and in sheltered housing. The study was carried out in two urban neighborhoods in the North of the Netherlands. Our findings underline that different pathways to independence are shaped by individual resources and capabilities, as well as by social and physical characteristics of the living environment. The three key capabilities that lead to being independent that we found were 1) to be comfortable at home and in the neighborhood; 2) to enjoy fulfilling social relations, and 3) to be mobile. The generated insights could be linked to policy initiatives with regard to age-friendly environments.
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Taylor, Philip E., and Alan Walker. "The Ageing Workforce: Employers' Attitudes towards Older People." Work, Employment and Society 8, no. 4 (December 1994): 569–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/095001709484005.
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This article reports the results of a national postal survey of employers' attitudes and policies towards older workers supported by the ESRC. The survey's key findings are discussed in the context of the declining labour force participation of older people over the last twenty years and the recent turnaround in official and some employer attitudes towards this group. Findings of particular importance are those relating to the sectoral differences in employers' orientations towards older workers, such as the larger proportion of those in the production and construction than in the service sectors who were using early retirement schemes and the differences in strategic responses to the ageing workforce, with the service sector leading production, construction and manufacturing; the impact of employers' perceptions of older workers' lack of appropriate skills which, when coupled with figures illustrating the lack of access of older people to both official and employer training programmes, suggests a self-fulfilling prophecy; and the surprising support given by employers for anti-age discrimination legislation. Data from the survey are also used to test the model put forward by Atkinson (1989) suggesting that employers' policies develop incrementally. The article concludes by arguing that the educative approach favoured by the government is not likely to have a significant impact on the employment prospects of older workers. Therefore this group is likely to be increasingly confined to a choice between low-skill/low-wage jobs in the service sector or non-employment.
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Konjar, Miha, Matej Nikšič, Janez Peter Grom, Sabina Mujkić, and Alenka Fikfak. "Ensuring living condition for ageing population by public–private partnership (PPP)." E3S Web of Conferences 33 (2018): 03002. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/20183303002.
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Lack of financial resources has become one of the main issues in fulfilling social and physical needs in urban development. The declining levels of public resources make the collaboration between public and private investors necessary. When facing the challenges of ageing population, shared investment may contribute to the appropriate development of sheltered housing to meet the goals of spatial planning as well as certain standards at the level of urban design. By ensuring appropriate living conditions for all generations such urban PPP projects may contribute to the fulfilment of the public interest. The paper presents practice of PPP implementation in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where local authority with the collaboration of private partners ensured more than 400 sheltered apartments in the last years. Examples show the extension of the idea from the 70s onwards in finding new models of housing for the aging population. The development of new models can be a good example of strengthening the cooperation between public and private partners in the field of urban development practice.
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Rackow, Ashley R., David J. Nagel, Claire McCarthy, Jennifer Judge, Shannon Lacy, Margaret A. T. Freeberg, Thomas H. Thatcher, R. Matthew Kottmann, and Patricia J. Sime. "The self-fulfilling prophecy of pulmonary fibrosis: a selective inspection of pathological signalling loops." European Respiratory Journal 56, no. 5 (September 17, 2020): 2000075. http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/13993003.00075-2020.
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Pulmonary fibrosis is a devastating, progressive disease and carries a prognosis worse than most cancers. Despite ongoing research, the mechanisms that underlie disease pathogenesis remain only partially understood. However, the self-perpetuating nature of pulmonary fibrosis has led several researchers to propose the existence of pathological signalling loops. According to this hypothesis, the normal wound-healing process becomes corrupted and results in the progressive accumulation of scar tissue in the lung. In addition, several negative regulators of pulmonary fibrosis are downregulated and, therefore, are no longer capable of inhibiting these feed-forward loops. The combination of pathological signalling loops and loss of a checks and balances system ultimately culminates in a process of unregulated scar formation. This review details specific signalling pathways demonstrated to play a role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. The evidence of detrimental signalling loops is elucidated with regard to epithelial cell injury, cellular senescence and the activation of developmental and ageing pathways. We demonstrate where these loops intersect each other, as well as common mediators that may drive these responses and how the loss of pro-resolving mediators may contribute to the propagation of disease. By focusing on the overlapping signalling mediators among the many pro-fibrotic pathways, it is our hope that the pulmonary fibrosis community will be better equipped to design future trials that incorporate the redundant nature of these pathways as we move towards finding a cure for this unrelenting disease.
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Yang, D., E. L. Fong, and M. Chan. "107 Increased Hospitalisation Associated with Nasogastric Feeding in Advanced Dementia: Experience of A Geriatric Unit in Singapore." Age and Ageing 49, Supplement_1 (February 2020): i34—i36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afz196.09.
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Abstract Introduction Tube feeding is not recommended in persons with advanced dementia and dysphagia; it does not improve nutrition, reduce infections or mortality. In Singapore, limited data exists on the prevalence of oral versus tube feeding in persons with advanced dementia, and the alignment between the mode of administering food and fluids and a prior advanced care plan (ACP) discussion. Methods Retrospective review of 120 patients from January to October 2017 was conducted to examine the prevalence of oral and tube feeding in advanced dementia patients with ACP, and the alignment of the chosen mode of intake with their ACP. Outcomes include rates of readmission, pneumonia, ACP revisions and mortality at six months. Results 42 subjects fulfilling criteria were analysed. 81.0% continued oral feeding. There was a statistically significant difference in the decision for tube insertion between oral and tube feeding groups (p=0.02), which was influenced by the ACP discussion. Concordance with ACP discussion in the tube feeding group was mixed, with 50% agreeing for tube insertion and 33.3% who were clinically guided. Surrogates made the decisions in 90.5% of the discussions. Six-month readmission rate was 32.4% for orally-fed patients versus 75% for tube-fed patients (p=0.045). 52.9% of admissions were attributed to pneumonia. 8.8% of orally fed patients revised their ACP to opt for a trial of treatment in their own home instead of readmission to the hospital. There was no difference in 6-month mortality (p=0.123). Conclusions Oral feeding was continued for most advanced dementia patients. Tube feeding does not offer survival benefit or prevent aspiration at 6 months, yet is associated with increased hospitalisations. ACP discussion should be initiated earlier to provide persons with dementia the opportunity to express their preferences for the mode of food and fluid intake.
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OPREE, SUZANNA J., and MATTHIJS KALMIJN. "Exploring causal effects of combining work and intergenerational support on depressive symptoms among middle-aged women." Ageing and Society 32, no. 1 (February 24, 2011): 130–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x11000171.
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ABSTRACTIn debates about ageing western societies it is often assumed that many middle-aged women struggle to combine paid employment and intergenerational support, and that the subsequent stress leads them to experience an increase in depressive symptoms. Cross-sectional studies have supported this notion, but the question remains whether combining work and intergenerational support actually causes an increase in depressive symptoms. In order to fill a gap in the literature, this study examines the proportion of middle-aged women combining paid work and support to an adult child and/or parent, and the extent to which combining these roles affects women's depressive symptoms over time. For this purpose, we make use of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) data set which includes longitudinal data collected on European women aged 50+. Descriptive analyses indicated that 14 per cent of middle-aged women combine the roles of employee, support provider to an adult child, and/or support provider to a parent. Results from semi-dynamic and full-dynamic regression analyses indicate that combining roles can take away some, of the positive mental health effects of fulfilling a role. These findings support the role combination stress hypothesis.
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Lin, Li Hui. "The Research of Constructing Generativity Model of Taiwan's Older Adults." International Journal for Innovation Education and Research 9, no. 9 (September 1, 2021): 323–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.31686/ijier.vol9.iss9.3345.
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This research was mainly based on the literature review and interview to depict the older adult’s self-contribution is built-up by social participation, giving meanings to contribution services throughout the process, and to establish the localized generativity model. Generativity is defined as an inner desire of an individual to lend a hand or make contribution to the society. Older adults wished to keep nurturing, guiding and mentoring their offspring even in passing down their experiences and knowledges to the next generation during the progress of ageing. Thus, generativity is the key concept to a successful ageing and old ages. In a nutshell, generativity is an implicit ability, which is possessed by all, to help one’s descendants and others, and create one’s fulfilling life. The findings of this research found that the development process of older adults generativity model in Taiwan includes 8 features: motivation source, concern, belief, commitment, preparation, action, narration, and future. This result echoed to generativity model proposed by McAdams and de St. Aubin (1992). The participations make people have clearly understanding about the significance of construct the generativity and investigate the generativity model of Taiwan.
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Pagnini, Francesco, Cesare Cavalera, Eleonora Volpato, Benedetta Comazzi, Francesco Vailati Riboni, Chiara Valota, Katherine Bercovitz, et al. "Ageing as a mindset: a study protocol to rejuvenate older adults with a counterclockwise psychological intervention." BMJ Open 9, no. 7 (July 2019): e030411. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2019-030411.
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IntroductionAlthough ageing is generally perceived as a biologically determined process, the literature increasingly points to the importance of psychological factors in the ageing process, specifically age-related stereotypes or cognitive mindsets. Such stereotypes reflect self-perceptions and others’ perceptions about the ageing process and can have a strong influence on health and life satisfaction, specifically through self-fulfilling prophecy mechanisms. This study aimed to investigate whether changes in mindsets can change the ageing process.Methods and analysisThis study replicates in large part the original 1979 ‘Counterclockwise’ experiment by Ellen Langer and will involve a group of older adults (aged 75+) taking part of a 1-week retreat outside of Milan, Italy. Participants will be instructed and helped torelivetheir younger selves, actingas ifthey are living in the year 1989. The week-long residential programme is designed to prime this perception by incorporating a completely retrofitted physical environment, as well as providing opportunities to engage in social activities that would have been common in the late 1980s. This ‘counterclockwise’ intervention will be tested as a randomised control trial comprised of the experimental (‘counterclockwise’) group, an active control group (same activities, no time manipulation) and a no-treatment group. Ninety participants will be randomly allocated to one of these three conditions. Every participant will be assessed for medical, cognitive, psychological and age appearance at four time points: at the time of recruitment, after the intervention (ie, after a week for the no-treatment group) and again after 6 and 12 months.Ethics and disseminationThe study has been approved by the Ethics Committees of the Department of Psychology of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore and Don Gnocchi Foundation. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals, scientific meetings and direct presentation to the general population.Trial registration numberNCT03552042; Pre-results.
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Graham, L., B. Cundill, A. Ellwood, J. Fisher, M. Goodwin, R. Hawkins, M. Holland, et al. "101 A Posture and Mobility Training Package for Care Home Staff: Results of A Cluster Randomised Controlled Feasibility Trial." Age and Ageing 49, Supplement_1 (February 2020): i34—i36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afz196.03.
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Abstract Introduction Provision of care for care home residents with complex needs is challenging. Physiotherapy and activity interventions can improve physical well-being but are often time-limited and resource intensive. A sustainable approach is to enhance the confidence, skills and abilities of care home staff. This trial assessed the feasibility of undertaking a definitive evaluation of the Skilful Care Training Package (SCTP) - a posture and mobility training programme developed by physiotherapists for care home staff. Methods A parallel-group, cluster randomised controlled feasibility trial was undertaken in ten care homes in Yorkshire. Five were randomised to receive SCTP, five to usual care. SCTP was delivered by specialist physiotherapists, with the intention of training all direct care staff. Following consent, data were collected from and about residents with restricted mobility (those fulfilling the eligibility criteria) at baseline, three and six months post-randomisation by blinded researchers. Outcome measurement included resident mobility, posture, pain and quality of life. The feasibility of recruitment, retention, data collection and intervention delivery was assessed. Results All residents (348) at participating homes were screened for eligibility. 250 were eligible and 146 took part. Follow-up was balanced between arms, with an overall loss-to-follow-up rate of 28.8% at six months. Where residents were available for six-month follow-up, proxy data provision was excellent (97.1% - 100% of expected data). Difficulty collecting data directly from residents was experienced (43.3% of expected data) due to high levels of cognitive impairment. Staff attendance at training met or was close to pre-specified criteria for acceptability in three homes, with 63.0%, 63.6% and 65.8% direct care staff attending all sessions, and >85% attending at least one session across all three homes. However attendance fell short of acceptability in two homes, with only 21.4% and 12.5% staff attending all sessions. Conclusions It is feasible to recruit and follow-up residents in a randomised trial comparing SCTP and usual care. Proxy data collection is a successful method, but collection of data from residents is difficult. Intervention delivery success was variable, illustrating heterogeneity between care homes. Future research will be informed by learning from those homes with greater intervention compliance. Work should be undertaken to investigate how best to collect meaningful data from residents.
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Szawarski, Piotr. "Classic cases revisited: Mr Miura and the delusion of immortality." Journal of the Intensive Care Society 19, no. 3 (January 29, 2018): 269–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1751143718754995.
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Death continues to be viewed as a failure by many clinicians and society. For now however, it remains a biological certainty and to think otherwise is to delude oneself. Nevertheless, the society is becoming older and many individuals enjoy fulfilling life in spite of advancing years. The trajectory of age-related physiological deterioration varies, introducing an uncertainty as to the potential for survival when faced with critical illness. There is risk of harm associated with invasive interventions and utility of such remains uncertain in the very elderly. Changing demographic demands improved triage of the elderly patients and an evolution of the research agenda to acknowledge ageing population. There is also moral imperative to ensure avoidance of harm and cost-effectiveness in relation to intensive care unit utilisation by this patient population.
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Weller, Sally A. "Discrimination, labour markets and the labour market prospects of older workers: what can a legal case teach us?" Work, Employment and Society 21, no. 3 (September 2007): 417–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0950017007080006.
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As governments become increasingly concerned about the fiscal implications of the ageing population, labour market policies have sought to encourage mature workers to remain in the labour force. The `human capital' discourses motivating these policies rest on the assumption that older workers armed with motivation and vocational skills will be able to return to fulfilling work. This article uses the post-redundancy recruitment experiences of former Ansett Airlines flight attendants to develop a critique of these expectations. It suggests that policies to increase older workers' labour market participation will not succeed while persistent socially constructed age- and gender-typing shape labour demand. The conclusion argues for policies sensitive to the institutional structures that shape employer preferences, the competitive rationality of discriminatory practices, and the irresolvable tension between workers' human rights and employers' property rights.
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Hendry, Anne. "Living well in later life in Scotland." Working with Older People 21, no. 1 (March 13, 2017): 22–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/wwop-12-2016-0037.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the development, implementation and early impact of a national action plan for active and healthy ageing in Scotland. Design/methodology/approach The Joint Improvement Team, NHS Health Scotland, the Scottish Government and the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland (ALLIANCE) co-produced the action plan with older people from the Scottish Older People’s Assembly. Together they supported partnerships to embed the action plan as an important element of the reshaping care for older people transformation programme in Scotland. Findings A cross-sector improvement network supported health, housing and care partnerships to use a £300 million Change Fund to implement evidence based preventative approaches to enable older people to live well. Older people in Scotland spent over two million days at home than would have been expected based on previous balance of care and impact of ageing. Practical implications Improving the health and wellbeing of older people is not just the responsibility of health and social care services. Enabling older people to live independent, active and fulfilling lives requires coordinated effort that spans national and local government policy areas, mobilises all sectors of society, and involves all health and care disciplines. Success starts with listening to what matters to older people, and working together, and with older people and local communities, to make that a reality. Originality/value This case study from Scotland offers transferable learning for other systems who have an ageing population and an ambitions to enable them to live well in later life.
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Finlay, Jessica M., Joseph E. Gaugler, and Robert L. Kane. "Ageing in the margins: expectations of and struggles for ‘a good place to grow old’ among low-income older Minnesotans." Ageing and Society 40, no. 4 (September 24, 2018): 759–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x1800123x.
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AbstractWhat constitutes a ‘good place to grow old’? This study aimed to characterise salient features of built and social environments that are essential to support low-income ageing residents. Seated and mobile interviews were conducted with community-dwelling older participants (aged 55–92, mean = 71 years) in three distinct socio-economic and geographic samples of the Minneapolis (Minnesota, United States of America) metropolitan area. The interviews prompted participants to evaluate their homes and neighbourhoods, and probed for particular socio-spatial characteristics that impact residential wellbeing. Qualitative thematic analyses focused on 38 individuals living in subsidised housing and homeless shelters. Four interrelated themes encompassed essential residential qualities: (a) safety and comfort, (b) service access, (c) social connection, and (d) stimulation. These broad ideals, when achieved, enabled participants to cultivate residential wellbeing and fulfilling place attachment. Analyses of the empirical data complicate theoretical assumptions by recognising unequal access to, irregular opportunities for and potential dangers of place attachment. Rich descriptions of participant homelessness, health hazards, crime, lack of supportive infrastructure and social isolation illustrate how place attachment is not inherently positive or necessarily attainable; rather, it is problematic and can involve risk. This article extends geographical gerontology's address of socio-spatial inequalities by focusing on disadvantaged ageing individuals.
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Kos-Łabędowicz, Joanna. "Seniors’ use of ICT to obtain access to cars for fulfilling their transport needs – an exploratory study." Prace Komisji Geografii Komunikacji PTG 23, no. 4 (2020): 49–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.4467/2543859xpkg.20.027.13129.
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The ageing society and the necessity to meet the needs (including transport ones) of elderly people are a challenge for an increasing number of countries, including the EU Member States and Poland. Different types of modern ICT solutions are being proposed as a way of improving the meeting of the needs of elderly people in order to prevent their social exclusion. The growing popularity of solutions and services that use information and communication technologies (mainly the Internet and mobile applications) can also be observed in transport services and is perceived as a means to better meet transport needs. The aim of the article is to examine the extent to which seniors use ICT solutions to meet their transport needs when, for example, obtaining access to a car or car ride. A literature review, statistical data analysis and results of primary survey studies carried out on a sample of U3A students were used. The results of the analysis do not allow generalization on the entire population of elderly people but point to some interesting conclusions. For instance, at least one of the considered solutions (e.g. sharing travel by car as a driver or passenger) was used by almost two-thirds of those that responded using the Internet. Also, the solutions given were rated rather positively by the respondents in terms of their usefulness and ease of use. Those findings, apart from indicating further directions of research, allow for a cautious statement that these types of solutions can actually serve to better meet the transport needs of seniors.
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Astell, Arlene J., Nicole Bouranis, Jesse Hoey, Allison Lindauer, Alex Mihailidis, Chris Nugent, and Julie M. Robillard. "Technology and Dementia: The Future is Now." Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders 47, no. 3 (2019): 131–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1159/000497800.
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Background: Technology has multiple potential applications to dementia from diagnosis and assessment to care delivery and supporting ageing in place. Objectives: To summarise key areas of technology development in dementia and identify future directions and implications. Method: Members of the US Alzheimer’s Association Technology Professional Interest Area involved in delivering the annual pre-conference summarised existing knowledge on current and future technology developments in dementia. Results: The main domains of technology development are as follows: (i) diagnosis, assessment and monitoring, (ii) maintenance of functioning, (iii) leisure and activity, (iv) caregiving and management. Conclusions: The pace of technology development requires urgent policy, funding and practice change, away from a narrow medical approach, to a holistic model that facilitates future risk reduction and prevention strategies, enables earlier detection and supports implementation at scale for a meaningful and fulfilling life with dementia.
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Stock, Jennifer, Angela Clifford, and Eef Hogervorst. "Exercise Interventions to Improve Cognitive Performance in Older Adults - Potential Psychological Mediators to Explain Variation in Findings." European Neurological Review 7, no. 2 (2012): 107. http://dx.doi.org/10.17925/enr.2012.07.02.107.
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Evidence suggests that exercise interventions can improve cognitive performance in older adults and prevent dementia. However, there are inconsistent results across studies. Exercise interventions vary greatly in terms of their environment and specific features. As a consequence, the different types of social interaction, mental engagement and feedback alter the psychological impact of the exercise. In this article, mediating relationships are discussed in terms of the impact that psychological factors related to exercise can have on cognitive performance. The probable psychological mediators discussed here include self-efficacy, attitudes and self-perceptions of ageing, perceived control manifesting in a self-fulfilling prophecy, causal attributions of memory problems and mood. The mechanisms of these mediating relationships are unclear and further research is needed to investigate them. In addition, the magnitude of the effect of psychological mediators and their relative contribution compared with physiological mechanisms in this context should be further investigated.
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Harvey, Peter W. "The Australian Royal Commission into the Aged Care Industry 2019." Journal of Aging Research and Healthcare 2, no. 4 (January 30, 2019): 1–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.14302/issn.2474-7785.jarh-19-2608.
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In the light of various complaints about the quality of care provided by and operation of aged care facilities across Australia, the Commonwealth Government has announced a Royal Commission into the activities of the sector. As the proportion of Australians over 65 continues to grow with the ageing of the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation, more Australians are seeking secure aged care arrangements to meet their increasingly complex living and healthcare needs. We hear much comment today about the concept of healthy ageing and the importance of older people staying connected to and active in their communities. Not only does this ongoing connectivity support better lifestyles and health status, it provides an avenue for older people to contribute to the support of others once their more formal working lives are concluded. Unfortunately, the gap between the rhetoric and the reality of ageing in Australia is strained and it appears that much about the operations of the aged care sector today is less than satisfactory. While some well-funded retirees can afford comfortable and fulfilling living arrangements, many others are left in less ideal circumstances. With aged care organisations currently building the next generation of ‘hotel’ style living arrangements for cashed up self-funded retirees, others are being left behind financially and in terms of the quality of their care. At the same time, maltreatment and abuse of residents is coming to light, as in the ‘Oakden Nursing Home’ situation in South Australia, for example. Consequently, the Federal Government has now launched a formal inquiry into the activities of organisations running aged care facilities in Australia. The inquiry is designed to assess the operation of this industry with a focus on the economics of aged care centres, the quality of care, the food and recreational activities provided and the challenge of staffing these facilities to keep residents safe and well as they age in dignity.
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Blignaut, Marguerite, Sarah Harries, Amanda Lochner, and Barbara Huisamen. "Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated Protein Kinase: A Potential Master Puppeteer of Oxidative Stress-Induced Metabolic Recycling." Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity 2021 (April 1, 2021): 1–12. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/8850708.
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Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated protein kinase (ATM) has recently come to the fore as a regulatory protein fulfilling many roles in the fine balancing act of metabolic homeostasis. Best known for its role as a transducer of DNA damage repair, the activity of ATM in the cytosol is enjoying increasing attention, where it plays a central role in general cellular recycling (macroautophagy) as well as the targeted clearance (selective autophagy) of damaged mitochondria and peroxisomes in response to oxidative stress, independently of the DNA damage response. The importance of ATM activation by oxidative stress has also recently been highlighted in the clearance of protein aggregates, where the expression of a functional ATM construct that cannot be activated by oxidative stress resulted in widespread accumulation of protein aggregates. This review will discuss the role of ATM in general autophagy, mitophagy, and pexophagy as well as aggrephagy and crosstalk between oxidative stress as an activator of ATM and its potential role as a master regulator of these processes.
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Muszalik, Marta, Ate Dijkstra, Kornelia Kędziora-Kornatowska, Halina Zielińska-Więczkowska, and Tomasz Kornatowski. "Independence of elderly patients with arterial hypertension in fulfilling their needs, in the aspect of functional assessment and quality of life (QoL)." Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics 52, no. 3 (May 2011): e204-e209. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.archger.2010.11.011.
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Hadley, Robin Andrew. "“I’m missing out and I think I have something to give”: experiences of older involuntarily childless men." Working with Older People 22, no. 2 (June 11, 2018): 83–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/wwop-09-2017-0025.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to extensively report the implications of the global trend of declining fertility rates and an increasingly ageing population. The experiences of childless men are mostly absent from gerontological, psychological, reproduction, and sociological, research. These disciplines have mainly focussed on family formation and practices, whilst the fertility intentions, history, and experience of men have been overlooked. Not fulfilling the dominant social status of parenthood provides a significant challenge to both individual and cultural identity. Distress levels in both infertile men and women have been recorded as high as those with grave medical conditions. Design/methodology/approach The aim of this paper is to provide some insight into the affect involuntarily childless has on the lives of older men. This auto/biographical qualitative study used a pluralistic framework drawn from the biographical, feminist, gerontological, and life course approaches. Data were gathered from in-depth semi-structured biographical interviews with 14 self-defined involuntary men aged between 49 and 82 years from across the UK. A broad thematic analysis highlighted the complex intersections between involuntary childlessness and agency, biology, relationships, and socio-cultural structures. Findings Diverse elements affected the men’s involuntary childlessness: upbringing, economics, timing of events, interpersonal skills, sexual orientation, partner selection, relationship formation and dissolution, bereavement, and the assumption of fertility. The importance of relationship quality was highlighted for all the men: with and without partners. Quality of life was affected by health, relationships, and social networks. Awareness of “outsiderness” and a fear of being viewed a paedophile were widely reported. Research limitations/implications This is a study based on a small self-selecting “fortuitous” sample. Consequently care should be taken in applying the findings to the wider population. Originality/value Health and social care policy, practice and research have tended to focus on family and women. The ageing childless are absent and excluded from policy, practice, and research. Recognition of those ageing without children or family is urgent given that it is predicted that there will be over two million childless people aged 65 and over by 2030 (approximately 25 per cent of the 65 and over population). The consequences for health and social care of individuals and organisations are catastrophic if this does not happen.
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Jancinova, Viera, Tomas Perecko, Radomir Nosal, Klara Svitekova, and Katarina Drabikova. "The Natural Stilbenoid Piceatannol Decreases Activity and Accelerates Apoptosis of Human Neutrophils: Involvement of Protein Kinase C." Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity 2013 (2013): 1–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/136539.
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Neutrophils are able to release cytotoxic substances and inflammatory mediators, which, along with their delayed apoptosis, have a potential to maintain permanent inflammation. Therefore, treatment of diseases associated with chronic inflammation should be focused on neutrophils; formation of reactive oxygen species and apoptosis of these cells represent two promising targets for pharmacological intervention. Piceatannol, a naturally occurring stilbenoid, has the ability to reduce the toxic action of neutrophils. This substance decreased the amount of oxidants produced by neutrophils both extra- and intracellularly. Radicals formed within neutrophils (fulfilling a regulatory role) were reduced to a lesser extent than extracellular oxidants, potentially dangerous for host tissues. Moreover, piceatannol did not affect the phosphorylation of p40phox—a component of NADPH oxidase, responsible for the assembly of functional oxidase in intracellular (granular) membranes. The stilbenoid tested elevated the percentage of early apoptotic neutrophils, inhibited the activity of protein kinase C (PKC)—the main regulatory enzyme in neutrophils, and reduced phosphorylation of PKC isoformsα,βII, andδon their catalytic region. The results indicated that piceatannol may be useful as a complementary medicine in states associated with persisting neutrophil activation and with oxidative damage of tissues.
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Sun, Qian, Nan Lu, Nan Jiang, and Vivian W. Q. Lou. "Intention to use respite services among informal care-givers of frail older adults in China: the role of care needs change." Ageing and Society 41, no. 1 (May 22, 2020): 101–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x20000628.
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AbstractPopulation ageing in China calls for evidence-based solutions, especially in terms of fulfilling long-term care needs among frail older adults. Respite services are identified as effective resources for alleviating care-giver burden and promoting the wellbeing of both older adults and their family care-givers. However, respite care is often under-used in China. This research aimed to examine factors associated with intention to use respite services among informal care-givers in Shanghai, mainland China. This study was part of the Longitudinal Study on Family Caregivers for Frail Older Adults in Shanghai. Pairs of older adults and their care-givers (N = 583) who successfully completed the 2013 and 2016 waves were included in the data analysis. Two logistic regression models were conducted, one with time-invariant and one with time-variant factors. The model with time-variant factors had greater explanatory power than the original Andersen model with time-invariant factors influencing intention to use respite services among care-givers. Care-givers had higher odds of intending to use respite services if they had higher care-giving burden, were caring elderly people who experienced care-giver transitions, or were caring for elderly people with increased function of ambulation or decreased function of feeding. The findings imply that change in functional health was a significant determinant of intention to use respite care. Relevant policy and service implications will be discussed.
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van Groenou, Marjolein Broese. "The IN-CARE Project: Socioeconomic Inequalities in Care Use and Provision Across Countries and Over Time." Innovation in Aging 4, Supplement_1 (December 1, 2020): 724. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igaa057.2565.
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Abstract Ageing societies and recent reforms to long-term care (LTC) in many European countries are likely to make informal care by kin and nonkin increasingly critical for fulfilling the care needs of older people. To date, it is unknown whether informal care falls disproportionately on disadvantaged populations. The IN-CARE project (a collaboration of Dutch, UK and German research teams; http://in-care.fk12.tu-dortmund.de/) examines if and how LTC reforms exacerbate existing social disparities in care use and provision in older age. To this end, this project compares the socioeconomic status (SES) gradient in formal and informal care across Europe and over time. A particular effort is made to include macro-level indicators of LTC systems in cross-level analyses across countries. The first paper presented in this symposium by the UK team studied SES-inequality in care receipt across European nations with different care systems; the second paper presented by the German team studied the same question but now among caregivers, the third paper provides the analyses for caregivers in Japan, and the fourth paper by the Dutch team studies SES-inequalities in care use within the Netherlands over time (1995-2015). The symposium will start off with a short description of the IN-CARE project (2019-2022). Tine Rostgaard agreed to be our discussant.
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Zainal Abidin, Norhaslinda, Shri Dewi Applanaidu, and Mohd Zabid M. Faeid. "Maximizing Crude Palm Oil Production in Malaysia: A Search for an Optimal Policy Using System Dynamics and Genetic Algorithm Approach." Journal of Social Sciences Research, SPI6 (December 25, 2018): 878–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.32861/jssr.spi6.878.884.
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Palm oil industry in Malaysia is experiencing a stagnant crude palm oil (CPO) production and has been lagging as compared to Indonesia. This situation can jeopardize Malaysia’s position in world palm oil marker since Malaysia needed to secure its export revenue and fulfilling increasing demand of palm oil both locally and globally in the future. The factors that influence the CPO production are many. Among others are the scarcity of plantation area, labour shortage, and demand from palm-based biodiesel industry. This study presents an integrated of system dynamics (SD) and genetic algorithm (GA) (SD-GA) model to find the optimal policy to improve CPO production in Malaysian palm oil industry. SD offers the platform to evaluate and to test policy while GA facilitate the process of searching the best solutions to achieve the maximum CPO production in 2050. The proposed model has produced five optimal values for five policy variables namely average replanting rate, mechanization adoption rate, and biodiesel mandate in transportation, industrial and other sectors respectively. The best solution suggested that CPO replanting rate need to be increased to 251743.5 hectares per year to decrease the accumulation of ageing area by optimizing all these policy variables. This study is expected to help policy makers in designing related policies and drawing the road map towards improving CPO production in Malaysian palm oil industry.
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Tanner, Denise, Lizzie Ward, and Mo Ray. "‘Paying our own way’: Application of the capability approach to explore older people’s experiences of self-funding social care." Critical Social Policy 38, no. 2 (August 17, 2017): 262–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0261018317724344.
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Adult social care policy in England is premised on the concept of personalisation that purports to place individuals in control of the services they receive through market-based mechanisms of support, such as direct payments and personal budgets. However, the demographic context of an ageing population and the economic and political context of austerity have endorsed further rationing of resources. Increasing numbers of people now pay for their own social care because either they do not meet tight eligibility criteria for access to services and/or their financial means place them above the threshold for local authority-funded care. The majority of self-funders are older people. Older people with complex and changing needs are particularly likely to experience difficulties in fulfilling the role of informed, proactive and skilled navigators of the care market. Based on individual interviews with older people funding their own care, this article uses a relational-political interpretation (Deneulin, 2011) of the capability approach (CA) to analyse shortfalls between the policy rhetoric of choice and control and the lived experience of self-funding. Whilst CA, like personalisation, is seen as reflecting neo-liberal values, we argue that, in its relational-political form, it has the potential to expose the fallacious assumptions on which self-funding policies are founded and to offer a more nuanced understanding of older people’s experiences.
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Tymoszuk, Urszula, Rosie Perkins, Neta Spiro, Aaron Williamon, and Daisy Fancourt. "Longitudinal Associations Between Short-Term, Repeated, and Sustained Arts Engagement and Well-Being Outcomes in Older Adults." Journals of Gerontology: Series B 75, no. 7 (June 11, 2019): 1609–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbz085.
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Abstract Objectives This study investigated whether frequency of receptive arts engagement over 10 years contributes to experienced, evaluative, and eudaimonic well-being in older adults. Methods We used repeated data of 3,188 respondents from Waves 2–7 (2004/2005–2014/2015) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. We examined longitudinal associations between short-term (frequent engagement at one wave), repeated (frequent engagement at 2–3 waves), and sustained (frequent engagement at 4–6 waves) arts engagement and experienced, evaluative and eudaimonic well-being. We fitted linear and logistic regression models adjusted for baseline well-being and a number of sociodemographic, economic, health, and social engagement factors. Results In the fully adjusted models, short-term engagement was not longitudinally associated with well-being, but repeated engagement with the theater/concerts/opera and museums/galleries/exhibitions was associated with enhanced eudaimonic well-being, and sustained engagement with these activities was associated with greater experienced, evaluative, and eudaimonic well-being. Discussion Long-term frequent engagement with certain arts activities is associated with higher levels of happiness, life satisfaction, self-realization, and control/autonomy in older adults. These findings suggest that policies that facilitate older adults’ access to arts venues and activities, and support their continued engagement with them, may help to promote happy, fulfilling lives of an increasing segment of the population.
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Bergmann, Michael, and Johanna Bristle. "Reading Fast, Reading Slow: The Effect of Interviewers’ Speed in Reading Introductory Texts on Response Behavior." Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology 8, no. 2 (March 21, 2019): 325–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jssam/smy027.
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Abstract Guidelines for interviewers frequently include instructions to read question texts exactly as they are worded. Deviations from these guidelines on standardized interviewing might affect the comparability of survey answers and impair the quality of data. This paper contributes to the literature on interviewer behavior by analyzing how interviewers change their reading behavior during fieldwork and whether this behavioral change influences the response behavior of survey respondents. We use item-level paradata from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) to measure interviewers’ reading times and focus our analyses on introductory questions that do not require an immediate response by the respondent. In contrast to prior research, this focus enables us to disentangle the reading times of interviewers from the response times of respondents. Based on fixed effects regression, our results show systematic changes in interviewers’ reading times of introductory items: First, reading times significantly decrease over the survey’s field period, even after controlling for relevant respondent characteristics and specific aspects of the interview situation. Second, a cross-national comparison, including fourteen European countries plus Israel, reveals that the decrease is uniform in almost all countries, suggesting its generalizability across different cultural contexts. Third, the decrease in reading times influences response behavior to varying degrees. Response behavior is affected if introductions contain relevant information for understanding or fulfilling the required task and especially if the response refers to within-survey requests. On the basis of these findings, we discuss the possible consequences for questionnaire design, interviewer training, and fieldwork monitoring.
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Williams, Lisa Ann, Lynne S. Giddings, Gary Bellamy, and Merryn Gott. "‘Because it’s the wife who has to look after the man’: A descriptive qualitative study of older women and the intersection of gender and the provision of family caregiving at the end of life." Palliative Medicine 31, no. 3 (July 10, 2016): 223–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0269216316653275.
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Background: Research indicates that women are the primary family caregivers for others at life’s end and, because of ageing populations, will keep fulfilling this role as they age. Yet, little is known about how the gendered nature of caregiving contributes to older women’s understandings of providing care. Aim: To explore how gender norms constructed older women’s views about the appropriate roles of women and men in providing palliative and end-of-life care for family members. Design: Six focus groups were conducted with 39 community dwelling older adults (36 women and 3 men) using two vignettes to prompt discussion about experience of end of life caring and attitudes towards Advance Care Planning. This article reports on data gathered from female participants’ reactions to Vignette 1 which prompted significant discussion regarding the intersection of gender and older women’s caregiving experience. Setting/participants: A total of 36 women in the age ranges of ‘50–59 years’ through to ‘90–99 years’ from New Zealand. Results: Three themes regarding gender and caregiving were identified: the expectation women will care, women’s duty to care and women’s construction of men in relation to caregiving and illness. The women adhered to stereotypical gender norms that regard women as primary caregivers. There was little connection between the burden they associated with caregiving and this gender construction. Conclusion: The expectation that older women will provide end-of-life care even when experiencing considerable burden is an unacknowledged outcome of gender norms that construct women as caregivers.
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Kim, Miri, and Soondool Chung. "Age-Friendly Environment, Social Support, Sense of Community, and Loneliness of Korean Adults." Innovation in Aging 4, Supplement_1 (December 1, 2020): 474. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igaa057.1533.
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Abstract Abrupt industrialization, urbanization, and the emergence of the nuclear family have contributed to the increase of single-person households, placing an emphasis on individualization in society. Because of such changes, more people are living alone and feeling lonely, alienated from society and family. This research examined the association between loneliness and age-friendly environment, a community equipped with policies, settings, services, and structures that promote active ageing and aging-in-place, with the mediating roles of social support and sense of community. The study analyzed a total of 590 respondents aged 45 and above using data from the age integration survey conducted by the OO Research Institute of South Korea. Structural equation modelling and the bootstrapping method were applied. Age-friendly environment was positively associated with social support (β=0.310,p=0.000) and sense of community (β=0.486,p=0.000). Social support was negatively associated with loneliness (β=-0.195,p=0.000). The full mediation effect of social support was observed in the pathway from age-friendly environment to loneliness (95% CI = [̶ 0.112, −0.028]). Social support was fundamental in lowering loneliness, and age-friendly environment could only reduce loneliness by following a pathway that enhances social support. In other words, despite how well an age-friendly environment is established, it would not decrease an individual’s loneliness unless it also enhances social support level. This finding sheds importance in maintaining satisfactory relationships that enable sharing of feelings, and fulfilling emotional and social needs in lowering loneliness. Measures to increase social support level within community are suggested.
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Rybakovsky, Oleg L. "Russian population reproduction: challenges, trends, factors and possible results by 2024." POPULATION 23, no. 1 (2020): 53–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.19181/population.2020.23.1.5.
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The article assesses the probability of fulfilling the tasks set by the President of the Russian Federation in the May 2018 Decree in the field of population reproduction. Each of the tasks outlines the current situation, current trends and the most likely results. Factors that contribute to or counteract solutions to the designated problems are identified. In particular, increase or even preservation of the number of births will be hindered by constant reduction since 2015 in the number of women of active reproductive age (25-39 years), who account for 4/5 of all births [1]. Their number will reduce from 17.9 million in 2015 to 15.0 million in 2024, and up to 12.0 million in 2030 [1]. Reduction in deaths from circulatory diseases and neoplasm will be prevented by: the tendency of population ageing; persistence and impossibility of rapid eradicating bad habits, such as smoking, regular excessive drinking; poor quality of food and alcohol, etc. In addition, in the future, with increase in the life expectancy (LE) in Russia, those, who have been cured of diseases related to other major causes of death, eventually will start dying from circulatory diseases or oncology. It is these diseases that are the leading causes of death in countries with high LE. There are made the following conclusions: it will be actually impossible to achieve the goal of “increasing the population of the country” (set in the Decree) only by reproductive means in the near future in Russia. To solve Russia's general demographic problems (ensuring a positive overall population growth; optimizing the placement of the population on its territory not only in the economic, but also in the geopolitical interests of the state; redemption of the structural demographic wave volatility; etc.), it is necessary to follow coordinated reproduction and migration routes.
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Iqbal, Roshan, S. Harsha, Nemichandra S. C., Shasthara Paneyala, and Vimala C. Colaco. "A correlative study of homocysteine levels and dementia: an Indian perspective." International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences 9, no. 8 (July 28, 2021): 2330. http://dx.doi.org/10.18203/2320-6012.ijrms20213077.
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Background: The prevalence of dementia is increasing worldwide and with India experiencing an epidemiological transition with increasing ageing population, the prevalence in India is expected to double by 2030 adding to the already high burden of significant health care costs and caregiver fatigue. Indian population has a higher burden of elevated homocysteine levels due to multiple factors. However, studies correlating the homocysteine levels and severity of dementia in the Indian subcontinent is lacking. This study is aimed to analyse the diagnostic utility of serum total homocysteine in dementia and to examine the association between serum total homocysteine levels and severity of dementia.Methods: This was a cross-sectional hospital-based study on patients attending neurology out-patient department who satisfied the DSM-V criteria. Each participant underwent an interview of general health and function followed by a standard assessment including medical history, physical and neurological examination as well as a neuropsychological battery.Results: A total of 30 patients fulfilling the DSM-Vcriteria for Dementia were included in the study. Increasing S. Homocysteine levels were associated with lower neuropsychological compound scores with MMSE score of 20.78±2.98 and ACE-3 score of 77.40±5.60 in patients with Serum Homocysteine less than 22 Umoles/L and 18.85±2.50 and 75.55±5.06 respectively in patients with serum homocysteine levels above 22 Umoles/L. However, there was no statistically significant correlation between neurocognitive scores and serum homocysteine levels (p value 0.06 for MMSE and 0.19 for ACE-3). Also, no correlation was found between severity of dementia and serum homocysteine levels with p≥0.05 and Pearson’s correlation coefficient r=0.06.Conclusions: This study shows no significant association between serum total homocysteine levels and severity of dementia. Thus, the association of homocysteine as an independent risk factor with the diagnosis and severity of dementia needs to be re-evaluated as it might undermine the multiple mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of dementia.
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TEN BRUGGENCATE, TINA, KATRIEN G. LUIJKX, and JANIENKE STURM. "When your world gets smaller: how older people try to meet their social needs, including the role of social technology." Ageing and Society 39, no. 8 (April 10, 2018): 1826–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x18000260.
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ABSTRACTSocial needs are important basic human needs. When social needs are not fulfilled, it can lead to mental and physical health problems. In an ageing society, meeting the social needs of older adults is important to sustain their wellbeing and quality of life. Social technology is used by younger people attempting to fulfil social needs. The aim of this study is to understand the social needs of older people and the role of social technology in fulfilling these needs. Using this information we will uncover opportunities for (technological) interventions. We conducted a qualitative explorative field study by interviewing 19 community-dwelling older adults. The participants were selected by professional care-givers with the help of a list of criteria for people at risk of social isolation or loneliness. Semi-structured interviews were held, using a topic list covering the following topics: social networks, social support, connectedness, neighbourhood, activities and hobbies, as well as use of and experiences with social technology. After thematic analysis, inductive codes were attached to quotations relevant to the research question. The results were described in four sections: (a) social needs and relationships; (b) the influence of life history and personality; (c) possibilities and barriers to meet social needs; and (d) use of and attitude towards social technology. The results indicate that the group of participants is heterogeneous and that their social needs and the way they try to meet these are diverse. The Social Production Functions Theory of Successful Aging (SPF-SA) was found to be a useful basis for interpreting and presenting the data. Social needs such as connectedness, autonomy, affection, behavioural confirmation and status are important for the wellbeing of older people. Although the need for affection is most easy to fulfil for older people, it looks like satisfaction of the need for behavioural confirmation and status are in some cases preferred, especially by the male participants. Resources such as relationships, activities, personal circumstances and social technology can help meet social needs. Where there is a lack of (physical) resources such as health problems, reduced mobility, death of network members, fear of rejection and gossip, and poor financial circumstances, meeting social needs can be more difficult for some older people. Social technology now plays a modest role in the lives of older people and in fulfilling their social needs. Because of its potential and its role in the lives of younger people, social technology can be seen as a promising resource in the satisfaction of social needs. However, since it is yet unknown how and to what extent the use of social network technologies, such as Facebook, can be beneficial for older people, more research in this area is needed. Based on our findings, we conclude that the world of older individuals is getting smaller. The loss of resources,e.g.the loss of one's health and mobility, may make it more difficult for an older person to connect with the world outside, which may result in a smaller social network. We therefore suggest that interventions to support older adults to meet their social needs may focus on two aspects: supporting and improving the world close by and bringing the world outside a little bit closer.
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Weerakoon, P. "45. TABOO TOPICS IN THE SEXY SIXTIES “THROWING THE BABY (BOOMERS) OUT WITH THE BATHWATER”." Sexual Health 4, no. 4 (2007): 301. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/shv4n4ab45.
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"A woman's sex life ends with the menopause; Sex is for the young, I'm too old to bother with all that; older people are asexual." "Later life sexuality in women is about words, images, ritual and fantasy as it is about the body" Sexuality in older adults especially the sexual behavior of older women has been shrouded in discreet silence distaste and ignorance (Oppenheimer 2002).1 Recent literature however has demythologised sexuality and revealed that men and women continue to be sexually active well into old age. A recent study from US reported in the New England Journal of Medicine (Lindau et al. 2007)2 reports that 73% of those 57-64 age, 53% of those 65-74 years of age and 26% of those 74-85 years of age reported to being sexually active (defined as any mutually voluntary activity with another person that involves sexual contact, whether or not intercourse or orgasm occurs). In all groups, sexual activity for men was higher. It is interesting that 35% of all women and 13% of all men interviewed said "sex was not at all important". It is recognized that leading an active and fulfilling sexual life is related to physical health, ability to function sexually, availability of a partner and perceptions of self esteem and body image (Lindau 2007; Clarke 2006).2,3 Overlying all of these is the personal knowledge, attitude and perceptions of the role of sexuality and sexual behaviors in wellbeing. With the 'Baby Boomer' generation coming of age as 'Older Adults', this presentation will explore whether the discourses of positive ageing have created the sexy ageless consumer as a personally and socially responsible citizen. Is the availability and apparent popularity of adult on-line dating for relationships; gyms and health fads for the healthy body; drugs and devices (sex toys such as the Eros clitoral device, and ben-wa balls); cosmetic treatments (Clarke 2006)3 and now surgical procedures for the body beautiful (Goodman et al. 2007)4 indicative of a need for assistance in sexuality? Or a use of the 'Baby Boomer' demographic bulge in the population as a marketing target?
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Salaffi, F., M. Carotti, S. Farah, M. DI Carlo, and A. Giovagnoni. "THU0612-HPR DOES PAIN AND COMORBIDITY BURDEN PREDICT FRAILTY IN PATIENTS WITH KNEE-OSTEOARTHRITIS? FINDINGS FROM THE RESEARCH ON OSTEOARTHRITIS AGAINST FRAILTY (ROAF) STUDY." Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 79, Suppl 1 (June 2020): 547.2–548. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/annrheumdis-2020-eular.3531.
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Background:Pain and comorbidity burden has been suggested to act as a stressor during aging, potentially accelerating declines in health and functioning in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee (KNEE-OA) (1,2).Objectives:The aims of the present research were to assess(i) the prevalence of frailty and(ii) its potential associated factors in a cohort of adult patients with KNEE-OA.Methods:Patients fulfilling the clinical American College of Rheumatology knee-OA criteria were assessed according to the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe Frailty Instrument (SHARE-FI), and classified as frail, pre-frail, or non-frail. The clinical evaluation included the following items: Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) Pain subscale (3) and Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 (SF-36). Evaluation of the comorbidities burden was performed with the modified Rheumatic Disease Comorbidity Index (mRDCI). Radiographic knee OA was defined according to Kellgren/Lawrence (KL) grades. Chi-square, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to test the prognostic value of frailty for the outcomes of interest.Table 1.Multinomial logistic regression analyses:c oefficients, standard errors and Wald statistic.VariableCoefficientStd. ErrorWaldPAge, yrs-0.178720.0653994.46820.0534Gender-0.0873040.733660.014160.9053BMI, Kg/m2-0.0963200.0811241.40970.2351Pain duration from diagnosis, yrs0.130650.0690513.58010.0585Educational level, yrs0.0669130.0803010.69440.4047Kellgren/Lawrence grades0.620740.506291.50320.2202mRDCI-0.602770.1899310.07140.0015SF36-MCS0.0281430.0200741.96550.1609SF36-PCS-0.000702600.0251180.00078240.9777WOMAC Pain subscale-0.291290.08161912.73730.0004Constant17.425185.732699.23930.0024Figure 1.Distribution of the WOMAC-Pain scores according to the frailty categories by SHARE-FI, and p-values for comparison (ANOVA test)Conclusion:Frailty or pre-frailty are common in KNEE-OA. The main factors associated with frailty were pain and comorbidity burden. Implementation of the frailty assessment into the routine rheumatological practice could represent a major advance in KNEE-OA care. Further studies are needed to identify the physiological mechanisms underpinning these associations.References:[1]Veronese N, Maggi S, Trevisan C, Noale M, De Rui M, Bolzetta F, Zambon S, Musacchio E, Sartori L, Perissinotto E, Stubbs B, Crepaldi G, Manzato E, Sergi G. Pain Increases the Risk of Developing Frailty in Older Adults with Osteoarthritis. Pain Med. 2017;18(3):414-427.[2]Salaffi F, Carotti M, Grassi W. Health-related quality of life in patients with hip or knee osteoarthritis: comparison of generic and disease-specific instruments. Clin Rheumatol. 2005 Feb;24(1):29-37.[3]Salaffi F, Leardini G, Canesi B, Mannoni A, Fioravanti A, Caporali R, Lapadula G, Punzi L; GOnorthrosis and Quality Of Life Assessment (GOQOLA). Reliability and validity of the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) Osteoarthritis Index in Italian patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2003;11(8):551-60.Disclosure of Interests:None declared
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Chalkley, Martin, Barry McCormick, Robert Anderson, Maria Jose Aragon, Nazma Nessa, Catia Nicodemo, Stuart Redding, and Raphael Wittenberg. "Elective hospital admissions: secondary data analysis and modelling with an emphasis on policies to moderate growth." Health Services and Delivery Research 5, no. 7 (February 2017): 1–186. http://dx.doi.org/10.3310/hsdr05070.
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BackgroundThe English NHS faces financial pressures that may render the growth rates of elective admissions seen between 2001/2 and 2011/12 unsustainable. A better understanding of admissions growth, and the influence of policy, are needed to minimise the impact on health gain for patients.ObjectivesThis project had several objectives: (1) to better understand the determinants of elective activity and policy to moderate growth at minimum health loss for patients; (2) to build a rich data set integrating health, practice and local area data to study general practitioner (GP) referrals and resulting admissions; (3) to predict patients whose treatment is unlikely to be cost-effective using patient-reported outcomes and to examine variation in provider performance; and (4) to study how policies that aim to reduce elective admissions may change demand for emergency care. The main drivers of elective admissions growth have increased either supply of or demand for care, and could include, for example, technical innovations or increased awareness of treatment benefits. Of the factors studied, neither system reform nor population ageing appears to be a key driver. The introduction of the prospective payment tariff ‘Payment by Results’ appears to have led to primary care trusts (PCTs) having increasingly similar lengths of stay. In deprived areas, increasing GP supply appears to moderate elective admissions. Reducing the incidence of single-handed practices tends to reduce referrals and admissions. Policies to reduce referrals are likely to reduce admissions but treatments may be particularly reduced in the lowest referring practices, in which resulting health loss may be greatest. In this model, per full-time equivalent, female and highly experienced GPs identify more patients admitted by specialists.ResultsIt appears from our studies that some patient characteristics are associated with not achieving sufficient patient gain to warrant cost-effective treatment. The introduction of independent sector treatment centres is estimated to have caused an increase in emergency activity rates at local PCTs. The explanations offered for increasing elective admissions indicate that they are manageable by health policy.ConclusionsFurther work is required to understand some of the results identified, such as whether or not high-volume Clinical Commissioning Groups are fulfilling unmet need; why some practices refer at low rates relative to admissions; why the period effect, which results from factors that equally affect all in the study at a point in time, dominates in the age–period–cohort analysis; and exactly how the emergency and elective sections of hospital treatment interact. This project relies on the analysis of secondary data. This type of research does not easily facilitate the important input of clinical experts or service users. It would be beneficial if other methods, including surveys and consultation with key stakeholders, could be incorporated into future research now that we have uncovered important questions.FundingThe National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.
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Kurniawati, Nia, Badollahi Mustafa, Firman Ardiansyah, and Eko Sri Mulyani. "PEMODELAN KONSEP FUNDAMENTAL REPOSITORI INSTITUSI DI PERPUSTAKAAN UNIVERSITAS SULTAN AGENG TIRTAYASA DENGAN MENGGUNAKAN FRAMEWORK ZACHMAN." Jurnal Perpustakaan Pertanian 22, no. 2 (August 6, 2015): 35. http://dx.doi.org/10.21082/jpp.v22n2.2013.p35-44.
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<p>Perpustakaan Universitas Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa (Untirta) sebagai perpustakaan perguruan tinggi negeri terus berupaya menghimpun konten lokal berupa karya ilmiah sivitas akademika dalam format hardcopy dan softcopy. Koleksi softcopy dalam format pdf belum diintegrasikan ke dalam sistem informasi perpustakaan. Koleksi tersebut, akan terus bertambah terdokumentasi secara fisik dan hanya dapat diakses di perpustakaan. Oleh sebab itu, perlu dukungan repositori institusi. Kajian ini bertujuan membuat pemodelan konsep fundamental repositori institusi menggunakan pendekatan framework Zachman. Kajian ini merupakan peneliltian analisis deskriptif dengan tool framework Zachman dan rules of fulfilling dari Pereira and Sousa. Hasil penelitian berupa suatu model konsep fundamental repositori institusi untuk diterapkan dengan memanfaatkan infrastruktur yang telah ada di Untirta.</p>
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Clark, Michael, Charlie Murphy, Tony Jameson-Allen, and Chris Wilkins. "Sporting memories, dementia care and training staff in care homes." Journal of Mental Health Training, Education and Practice 12, no. 1 (January 9, 2017): 55–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jmhtep-02-2016-0015.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the findings from a pilot and a follow-on study in which care assistants in care homes were trained to use sporting memories work to better help and engage with residents with dementia and low mood. Care homes have to support increasingly more fragile people and often the range of activities in the homes do not offer the best engagement between residents and staff to benefit the residents. This is for reasons of time to run activities in a busy home, and because of the need to find financially viable means of running a range of activities. Care assistants in care homes are a group of non-professionally educated workers and are often overlooked for training beyond basic health and safety training to help them improve their work and the care they provide. This work sought to explore whether sporting memories work was viable as an activity to offer in care homes via the training of care assistants. Design/methodology/approach The paper discusses the evidence from a pilot and then follow-on project in care homes in one city area. In the pilot observation was made of a training session and follow up interviews were undertaken with care home managers to see how the implementation of sporting memories was going. In the follow-on project the support to those undertaking the training was modified to include three learning network sessions. Data were collected on the experience of participants and their use of sporting memories work. Findings The findings were that care assistants could be trained in using sporting memories work and they often found it easy to use and fulfilling for them and people they cared for. This was despite the care assistants who participated often not having much interest in sports and little experience in this kind of work. However, practical barriers to maintaining the use of sporting memories work did remain. Research limitations/implications The evidence to date is of case studies of training staff in care homes in the use of sporting memories work, which provides good grounding for proof of the concept and key issues, but further research is needed on the costs and impacts of sporting memories work in care homes. The lack of direct feedback about experiences of care home residents of sporting memories work and its impact on them is a further limitation. Practical implications Sporting memories work is a flexible and readily adoptable intervention to engage older people in care homes and the evidence to date is that care assistants in care homes can be trained to use this approach to engaging older people. Practical challenges still remain to using sporting memories work in care homes, notably the issue of time for staff to do the work, but it is an approach for care homes to have available to them to match up to the interests of residents. Social implications Sporting memories work can be an important part of meeting some of the challenges society faces with an ageing population profile and to enhancing the care home environment and care assistants can be trained to use the approach. Originality/value This is the first paper to discuss training care home staff in the use of sporting memories work.
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Ivan, Loredana, and Stephen J. Cutler. "Ageism and Technology: The Role of Internalized Stereotypes." University of Toronto Quarterly 90, no. 2 (June 2021): 127–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.3138/utq.90.2.05.
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Ageist views have typically held that older persons are poor, frail, and resistant to change. One facet of this portrait of the older population has to do with their lower willingness and capability to learn and with their decreased openness to change (Cutler). Many of these ageist views are held by young people, resulting in a bias about the development and designs of different technologies. However, these same views are sometimes shared by older people themselves, resulting in a reluctance to adopt different technologies and the underestimation of their own performance or technology skills (Beckers et al.). In the current work, we analyze the reciprocal relationship between ageist stereotypes and technology, focusing on the implications of negative stereotypes of older people. We emphasize the self-fulfilling prophecy that technology, designed mostly by young people with the youth market in mind, creates prototypes that are more difficult for older people to use and algorithms that often fail to predict the habits, interests, and values of older people (Rosales and Fernández-Ardèvol). We also examine the role of stereotype threat impacting older people’s performance and technology adoption; for example, situation-specific anxiety when older people face younger adults who present greater digital skills (Ivan and Schiau).
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Cook, Ifor, Aimee L. Kirkup, Lauren J. Langham, Muminah A. Malik, Gabriella Marlow, and Ian Sammy. "End of Life Care and Do Not Resuscitate Orders: How Much Does Age Influence Decision Making? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis." Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine 3 (January 1, 2017): 233372141771342. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2333721417713422.
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With population aging, “do not resuscitate” (DNAR) decisions, pertaining to the appropriateness of attempting resuscitation following a cardiac arrest, are becoming commoner. It is unclear from the literature whether using age to make these decisions represents “ageism.” We undertook a systematic review of the literature using CINAHL, Medline, and the Cochrane database to investigate the relationship between age and DNAR. All 10 studies fulfilling our inclusion criteria found that “do not attempt resuscitation” orders were more prevalent in older patients; eight demonstrated that this was independent of other mediating factors such as illness severity and likely outcome. In studies comparing age groups, the adjusted odds of having a DNAR order were greater in patients aged 75 to 84 and ≥85 years (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.70, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.25, 2.33] and 2.96, 95% CI = [2.34, 3.74], respectively), compared with those <65 years. In studies treating age as a continuous variable, there was no significant increase in the use of DNAR with age (AOR 0.98, 95% CI = [0.84, 1.15]). In conclusion, age increases the use of “do not resuscitate” orders, but more research is needed to determine whether this represents “ageism.”
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Qiu, F. X., H. J. Zhan, J. Liu, and P. M. Barrett. "Downward transfer of support and care: understanding the cultural lag in rural China." Ageing and Society, December 9, 2020, 1–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x2000152x.
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Abstract The Chinese culture of filial piety has historically emphasised children's responsibility for their ageing parents. Little is understood regarding the inverse: parents’ responsibility and care for their adult children. This paper uses interviews with 50 families living in rural China's Anhui Province to understand intergenerational support in rural China. Findings indicate that parents in rural China take on large financial burdens in order to sustain patrilineal traditions by providing housing and child care for their adult sons. These expectations lead some rural elders to become migrant workers in order to support their adult sons while others provide live-in grandchild-care, moving into their children's urban homes or bringing grandchildren into their own homes. As the oldest rural generations begin to require ageing care of their own, migrant children are unable to provide the sustained care and support expected within the cultural tradition of xiao. This paper adds to the small body of literature that examines the downward transfer of support from parents to their adult children in rural China. The authors argue that there is an emerging cultural rupture in the practice of filial piety – while the older generation is fulfilling their obligations of upbringing and paying for adult children's housing and child care; these adult children are not necessarily available or committed to the return of care for their ageing parents. The authors reveal cultural and structural lags that leave millions of rural ageing adults vulnerable in the process of urbanisation in rural China.
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Wali Lone, Farah, and Ainharan Raveendran. "Urogynaecology service at a district general hospital in the United Kingdom-changing needs or a better understanding?" Open Journal of Nursing and Medical Care, May 13, 2019, 21–25. http://dx.doi.org/10.36811/ojnmc.2019.110003.
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The UK population is ageing rapidly, with 51% of the population predicted to be over 65 years of age by 2030 compared to 2010 [1]. The urogynaecological problems in women increase with age affecting over 20% of the adult population [2]. The National Health services (NHS) will have to transform to deal with very large increases in demand for and costs of health and social care. A study forecasting the prevalence of urogynaecological problems in the US forecasted a 50% increase in the service for urogynaecological conditions2. Role of integrated continence services within acute hospitals is gaining interest. A remarkable shift in NHS services will need good joined up primary and specialist care, community care and social care, with effective out of hour’s service. Urogynaecology offers a mix of problems affecting pelvic floor in a woman. It involves treating women with urinary and/or anal symptoms (urgency, incontinence, incomplete emptying) [3], pelvic organ prolapses (POP) and impact of these symptoms on sexual function. It is a relatively new sub-speciality which requires a holistic approach to a patient symptoms and expert skills to overcome demands from aging female population and fulfilling patient expectations.
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"Ageism prevents me fulfilling my potential." Nursing Standard 17, no. 44 (July 16, 2003): 31. http://dx.doi.org/10.7748/ns.17.44.31.s51.
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Cajander, Åsa, Marta Larusdottir, and Gustaf Hedström. "The effects of automation of a patient-centric service in primary care on the work engagement and exhaustion of nurses." Quality and User Experience 5, no. 1 (September 19, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s41233-020-00038-x.
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Abstract Digitalising patient-centric services to address society’s challenges with an ageing population and healthcare provision is by many seen as important. Studying the effects of the digitalisation on the work engagement of the users of the new systems is vital in this context, especially since previous research has established that the work engagement at work in healthcare is problematic. Work engagement is defined as a positive, fulfilling, affective-motivational state of work related well being, as is closely connected to the experience of resources and demands in the work context. These resources can be for example digital support, experienced demands or empowerment whereas exhaustion is connected to work demand in a workplace. This study contributes to knowledge about the effects of digitalisation on work engagement and exhaustion in the context of patient-centred services and eHealth. Contextual interviews were conducted on site for 5 h with nurses using a new chat function and using telephone for medical advice to patients. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted with all the nurses participating in this digitalisation project to gather more insights into their work engagement in the two work situations. Results were analysed in different themes of areas affected by the digitalisation in the two overarching themes: job demands and job resources. The results show that the change to a chat function when communicating with advice seekers had connection to work engagement in several ways. The nurses experienced less time pressure and emotional pressure, but also a loss of job control and feedback from colleagues working from home.
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Hong, Yan, Jingjing Fu, Dehui Kong, Siqi Liu, Zhu Zhong, Jing Tan, and Yu Luo. "Benefits and barriers: a qualitative study on online social participation among widowed older adults in Southwest China." BMC Geriatrics 21, no. 1 (August 3, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12877-021-02381-w.
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Abstract Background With the development of digital media, online activities are increasingly becoming part of the daily life of older adults. Widowed older adults generally would face changes in social interactions and activities due to widowhood; thus, the importance of online participation may be more prominent in this population. However, a detailed evidence on the experiences of online social participation among widowed older adults is relatively sparse. This study aimed to explore widowed older adults’ perceptions regarding online social participation in southwestern China. Methods This study adopted a qualitative approach. Semi-structured, in-depth individual interviews were conducted with 19 widowed older adults between September–December 2020. Thematic analysis was applied to analyse the data. Results Two major themes, “benefits” and “barriers” were identified from the original data analysis. Subcategories concerning the theme “benefits” were “benefit perception (convenience, flexible time, supplementation)”, “health promotion”, “emotional comfort”, and “social connection”. Subcategories of “barriers” were “worries: personal economic loss”, “concerns: security of digital device”, “troubles: the diversity of online social participation”, and “difficulties: using digital media”. Conclusions Social participation of widowed older adults in southwestern China has begun to be integrated into the digital world; however, it remains at an early stage with the simple purpose of engagement. The older adults may face many challenges for online social participation. Although there are barriers and challenges in online social participation, widowed older adults can reap its benefits, which can be used as an important measure to facilitate a fulfilling life and successful ageing. There is no doubt that online social participation will become a trend within the foreseeable future. Family, friends and health care professionals should pay more attention to the needs of online social participation in widowed older adults and provide adequate support for them to achieve a meaningful life.
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Skaansar, Ola, Cathrine Tverdal, Pål Andre Rønning, Karoline Skogen, Tor Brommeland, Olav Røise, Mads Aarhus, Nada Andelic, and Eirik Helseth. "Traumatic brain injury—the effects of patient age on treatment intensity and mortality." BMC Neurology 20, no. 1 (October 17, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12883-020-01943-6.
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Abstract Background Ageing is associated with worse treatment outcome after traumatic brain injury (TBI). This association may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy that affects treatment efficacy. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the role of treatment bias in patient outcomes by studying the intensity of diagnostic procedures, treatment, and overall 30-day mortality in different age groups of patients with TBI. Methods Included in this study was consecutively admitted patients with TBI, aged ≥ 15 years, with a cerebral CT showing intracranial signs of trauma, during the time-period between 2015–2018. Data were extracted from our prospective quality control registry for admitted TBI patients. As a measure of management intensity in different age groups, we made a composite score, where placement of intracranial pressure monitor, ventilator treatment, and evacuation of intracranial mass lesion each gave one point. Uni- and multivariate survival analyses were performed using logistic multinomial regression. Results A total of 1,571 patients with TBI fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The median age was 58 years (range 15–98), 70% were men, and 39% were ≥ 65 years. Head injury severity was mild in 706 patients (45%), moderate in 437 (28%), and severe in 428 (27%). Increasing age was associated with less management intensity, as measured using the composite score, irrespective of head injury severity. Multivariate analyses showed that the following parameters had a significant association with an increased risk of death within 30 days of trauma: increasing age, severe comorbidities, severe TBI, Rotterdam CT-score ≥ 3, and low management intensity. Conclusion The present study indicates that the management intensity of hospitalised patients with TBI decreased with advanced age and that low management intensity was associated with an increased risk of 30-day mortality. This suggests that the high mortality among elderly TBI patients may have an element of treatment bias and could in the future be limited with a more aggressive management regime.