Canadian Journal on Aging-Revue Canadienne Du Vieillissement最新文献

Background: People living with dementia (PLWD) want - and have the right - to participate in research that impacts them. However, barriers in legislation, institutional practices, and/or biases may jeopardize inclusion.

Objective and methods: Interviews with 33 Canadian dementia researchers were conducted to explore understandings of research consent with regard to dementia, research practices, and approaches in everyday research contexts.

Findings: Analysis of these interviews revealed challenges in negotiating the space between best practices and institutional requirements; gaps in knowledge, procedures, and guidelines on inclusion and consent; tensions regarding who should be involved in decision making; and how assumptions of presumed incapacity and/or the 'protection' of vulnerable groups create and/or sustain the exclusion of PLWD from research.

Discussion: Moving forward, findings suggest that advancing the meaningful inclusion of PLWD in Canadian dementia research will require clear, consistent standardized guidelines, flexible and ongoing consent processes, accessibility accommodations, and a stronger focus on rights-based practices.

Malgré le fait que le Nouveau-Brunswick est la seule province officiellement bilingue au Canada, l'accès aux soins de santé dans la langue officielle de la minorité semble demeurer un grand défi. La province est l'une de celles avec la plus grande proportion de personnes âgées de 65 ans et plus, dont 35 % sont francophones. Le but de cette étude qualitative de type théorisation ancrée était d'identifier comment les personnes aînées francophones en situation minoritaire accèdent aux soins en français. Des entrevues avec des personnes âgées provenant des trois communautés francophones minoritaires au N.-B. furent réalisées. Les résultats mettent en lumière le processus de « l'identité contre la vulnérabilité » en présentant six étapes qui illustrent le faible nombre d'actions entreprises pour accéder aux soins de santé en français. De plus, l'influence constante de facteurs extrinsèques et intrinsèques affecte l'étape où on s'identifie comme francophone, ce qui accentue la vulnérabilité de la personne aînée dans le système de santé.

Background: Studies conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted that confinement reduced access to services and increased caregivers' responsibilities and isolation.

Objectives: This study examines the longer-term impacts among 83 unpaid caregivers of older adults from four Canadian provinces.

Methods: Participants completed an online questionnaire between October 2021 and February 2022, and again 6 months later, on the assistance provided, support received, language of services, and psychological well-being. Additionally, eight caregivers participated in a qualitative interview.

Findings: Most home support services were maintained during the pandemic - some with restricted staffing - except for respite and transportation services. Caregivers increased their assistance during the lockdowns, and this higher involvement persisted in 2022. They perceived a negative impact of the pandemic on their health and that of the care recipient. Participants from official language minority communities described additional challenges accessing services in their preferred language.

Discussion: Greater recognition of caregivers' needs will help support their role as partners within health organizations.

Contemplative practices offer a promising lens for thinking about how people navigate change, vulnerability, and the emotional texture of later life. This article examines how such practices extend ideas of healthy aging, drawing on interviews and focus groups (n = 24) from an 8-week mind-body course. Participants reported strong satisfaction with the course, noting improvements in physical and mental health, and a notable shift towards greater kindness, openness, and curiosity towards themselves and others. Aiming to understand the key elements of contemplative training, our analysis identified three notable themes: learning to be with emotionally challenging experiences; normalizing change and vulnerability; and the ongoing development of a toolkit. Participants also reported a heightened ability to cope with challenges, make intentional life choices, and foster a positive attitude. From a gerontological perspective, the program offered helpful resources for adapting to change and embracing vulnerability as fundamental components of healthy aging. We also suggest the value of a life course perspective, which enables us to imagine contemplative practice as a form of training for aging well.

Intergenerational programs can support social connectedness, and an important element is engaging in activities together, known as 'co-occupation'. To address gaps in the literature, we explored how older adults and university students living together in a retirement home enacted co-occupations, the factors that shaped the co-occupations, and how the co-occupations affected intergenerational relationship-building and connections. We conducted a focused ethnography using a constructivist-interpretivist paradigm, interviews with university students and older adults, and on-site observations. We analysed data using reflexive thematic analysis. Co-occupations were critical in creating connections and mutually beneficial intergenerational relationships. Participants often transformed co-occupations to promote interactions. Important features of intergenerational housing appear to be access to co-occupations that are structured and unstructured, flexibility to modify co-occupations, and physical spaces that promote co-occupation. This research illustrates how co-occupation within intergenerational housing programs can support connection and relationship-building. Findings can be applied within intergenerational housing and other intergenerational programs.

Objective: We developed a clinical care pathway for the detection and management of frailty for older adults living in long-term care (LTC) homes.

Methods: We utilized a modified Delphi with residents of LTC homes experiencing frailty, their caregivers, and care providers. The pathway was created using existing literature and input from key LTC experts.

Findings: Fifty-two panelists completed round one of the Delphi, and 55.8% of these respondents completed round two. Both rounds had high agreement and ratings. We added six new statements following analysis of round two, and 15 statements were modified/updated to reflect panelist feedback. The final pathway included 28 statements and promotes a resident-centered approach that highlights caregiver involvement and inter-professional teamwork to identify and manage frailty, as well as initiate palliative care earlier.

Conclusion: Implementing this pathway will allow health care providers to adopt screening measures and adapt care to a resident's frailty severity.

Driving enables older adults to maintain independence and community mobility. Driving plays a pivotal role in the ability to engage in activities, socialize, run errands, and access health care services; yet many people eventually stop driving. This study investigates factors that contribute to transitions from driver to non-driver (i.e., driving status) using data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Among participants aged 45-85 who reported driving at baseline (n = 30,901), 1.65 percent (n = 510) had stopped driving at follow-up (three years later). Logistic regression identified predictors of this transition, including older age, female sex, lower income, urban residence, poorer self-rated health, difficulties with activities of daily living, low memory scores, and vision problems. These findings highlight the interplay of physical, cognitive, and environmental factors in driving cessation. This research advances understanding of mobility transitions in later life and informs targeted strategies to support older adults as they plan for driving retirement.

This study aimed to identify the associations between possible sarcopenia (p-sarcopenia) and fall risk, depression, and quality of life (QOL) in middle-aged (age ≥ 45 years) and older (age ≥ 65 years) adults. In this study, we analyzed a total of 10,181 men and women aged 45-85 years from the initial survey sample of the 2006 Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging. Among middle-aged men (women) adults, fall risk and depression were 4.09 (1.34) and 2.25 (2.05) times higher in the p-sarcopenia group than in the non-possible sarcopenia (np-sarcopenia) group, respectively (p < 0.05). Middle-aged and older men and women all showed low QOL-related scores, especially middle-aged men and women in the p-sarcopenia group (p < 0.05). Therefore, adequate management of sarcopenia is necessary in both older and middle-aged adults to reduce its burden as a public health concern.

Un certain nombre d'articles et de chapitres d'ouvrages évoquent les remaniements fonctionnels des familles face à la maladie neuro-évolutive (MNE) d'un de leurs proches. Cependant, peu d'études s'arrêtent sur le vécu de ces familles, sur leur positionnement face à la maladie et de comment elles se sentent reconnues par leurs proches atteints d'une MNE à un stade sévère. Dans cette étude, nous nous sommes intéressés au sentiment de reconnaissance des enfants et des conjoints, aux émotions de colère et de tristesse ainsi qu'aux sentiments de découragement et d'impuissance vécus par les familles face à l'évolution de la MNE de leurs parents / conjoints. Nous avons souhaité savoir s'il existait une différence significative entre les enfants et les conjoints au niveau de leur sentiment de reconnaissance et de leurs vécus. Nos résultats montrent qu'il existe une différence significative entre les enfants et les conjoints au niveau de la colère.