Reception of help for performing activities of daily living among community dwelling older adults living in Spain (2008-2011)

FERNANDEZ-MAYORALAS, G.; TALAVERA, J.C.; ROJO-PEREZ, F.; RODRIGUEZ-RODRIGUEZ, V.; FORJAZ, M.J.; PRIETO FLORES, M.E.; ROJO-ABUIN, J. M.

Congreso; The International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics European Region Congress (IAGG-ER); 2015

Background: Family and social network are essentialdimensions for quality of life, particularly when ageinginvolves the need of family help and social support. Theaim of this study is to analyse factors associated withreception of care among community dwelling older adultsliving in Spain, in 2008 and 2011.Methods: Two comparable cross-sectional data sourceswere used: The Quality of Life in Older Adults-Spain, 2008Survey (CadeViMa-España) (n=1106 people aged 60 andover) and The Ageing in Spain Longitudinal Study, 2011Pilot Survey (ELES-PS) (n=917, 60 and more). Objectiveand subjective indicators of the most important quality oflife dimensions were selected as independent variables.Receiving help for performing activities of daily living(ADL) was the dependent variable. Descriptive andLogistic Regression Analyses were carried out.Results: The final model based on the 2008 surveyincluded number of ADL dependencies (instrumental, selfcareand outdoor mobility activities), age, number ofdiseases, educational level, and frequency of personalcontacts (pseudo R2 = 0.757). The final model based onthe 2011 survey incorporated number of ADLdependencies (instrumental, self-care and outdoor mobilityactivities) and sex as significant variables (pseudo R2 =0.531).Conclusions. Results remained stable between 2008 and2011, revealing that the most important factor for receivingcare was the need of help for performing ADL. A better fitwas found for the 2008 model, and objective indicatorswere more explaining factors than subjective indicators.The use of longitudinal data could help to overcome somelimitations encountered when using cross-sectional data.