Centre for Policy on Ageing



Factors predicting assistive device use in the home by older people following rehabilitation
Author(s)	Laura N Gitlin, Ruth L Schemm, Lisa Landsbert
Journal title	Journal of Aging and Health, vol 8, no 4,, November 1996
Pages	pp 554-575
Keywords	Assistive technology ; Mobility ; Aftercare ; Living in the community ; United States of America.
Annotation	This article describes the pattern of assistive device use by older adults the first 3 months at home following rehabilitation, examines factors that predict home care use, and describes characteristics of users. The study involved 86 patients 55 years or older in Philadelphia who were hospitalised for a stroke, orthopaedic deficit, or lower limb amputation, and discharged home without assistive devices. Of the 642 devices provided in the hospital, 50 % were used frequently to always, with those using devices in the first month continuing over time. A respondent's expectation while hospitalised to use devices was an independent predictor of actual home use. Although there were no differences between users and non-users among sociodemographic variables, respondents with a lower limb amputation used devices with greater frequency than those with either a stroke or orthopaedic deficit. (AKM).
Accession Number	CPA-980407206 A
Classmark	M: C4: LN: K4: 7T
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing

...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.