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Older Adults’ Awareness of Community Health and Support Services for Dementia Care*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 December 2009

Jenny Ploeg ,
Margaret Denton ,
Joseph Tindale ,
Brian Hutchison ,
Kevin Brazil ,
Noori Akhtar-Danesh ,
Jean Lillie  and
Jennifer Millen Plenderleith
Jenny Ploeg*
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, McMaster University Department of Health, Aging and Society, McMaster University
Margaret Denton
Affiliation:
Department of Health, Aging and Society, McMaster University Department of Sociology, McMaster University McMaster Centre for Gerontological Studies
Joseph Tindale
Affiliation:
Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition, University of Guelph
Brian Hutchison
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis, McMaster University
Kevin Brazil
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University
Noori Akhtar-Danesh
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, McMaster University
Jean Lillie
Affiliation:
Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition, University of Guelph
Jennifer Millen Plenderleith
Affiliation:
McMaster Centre for Gerontological Studies
*
†Correspondence should be sent to: / La correspondance doivent être adressées à : Dr. Jenny Ploeg Associate Professor, School of Nursing Faculty of Health Sciences Room HSc3N28G McMaster University 1200 Main Street West Hamilton, Ontario L8N 3Z5 Phone: (905) 525-9140 ext. 22294 Fax: (905) 521-8834 (ploegj@mcmaster.ca)
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Abstract

The article examines where older adults seek help in caring for a parent with dementia and the factors associated with their identification of community health and support services as sources of assistance. The authors conducted telephone interviews, using random digit dialing, of 1,152 adults aged 50 and over in the city of Hamilton. Respondents received a vignette that raised issues related to parental dementia. In identifying support sources, over 37 per cent of respondents identified their physician, 33 per cent identified informal support such as family and neighbors, and 31 per cent identified home health services. Only 18 per cent identified community support services. Female participants having higher levels of education were more likely to identify their physician as a source of support. Knowing where to find information about community support services was associated with an increased likelihood of mentioning physicians and home health services as sources of assistance.

Résumé

L’article examine où les personne agées peuvent chercher l’aide pour prendre soin d’un parent avec démence et les facteurs associés à leur identification des services de santé et de soutien communautaires comme des sources d’aide. Les auteurs menées des entrevues téléphoniques, à l’aide de numérotation de chiffres aléatoires, de 1,152 adultes âgés de 50 et plus dans la ville de Hamilton. À déterminer les sources de soutien, plus 37 pour cent des répondants a identifié leur médecin, 33 pour cent a identifié un soutien informel comme la famille et voisins et 31 pour cent a identifié des services de santé maison. Seulement 18 pour cent a identifié des services de soutien communautaires. Participants femmes ayant des niveaux plus élevés de scolarité étaient plus susceptibles d’identifier leur médecin comme une source de soutien. Savoir où trouver renseignements sur services de soutien communautaires était associée à une probabilité accrue de mentionnant des médecins et des services de santé maison comme sources d’aide.

Keywords

services de soutien communautairesconsciencedémencesoignantsméthodologie de la vignettecommunity support servicesawarenessdementiacaregiversvignette methodology
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 28 , Issue 4 , December 2009 , pp. 359 - 370
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2009

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Footnotes

*

We thank the following organizations and their employees for the valuable contribution that they have made in the development and analysis of this research: Catholic Family Services of Hamilton – Linda Dayler; Coalition of Community Health and Support Services – Lynne Edwards; Community Information Hamilton – Lesley Russell; Seniors Activation Maintenance Program – Lynne Edwards and Dave Banko; Grocer-Ease – Bev Morgan; Hamilton Community Care Access Centre – Sherry Parsley, Tom Peirce, and Dianne Thompson; Ontario Community Support Association (OCSA) – Susan Thorning and Taru Virkamaki; Regional Geriatric Program (Central) – David Jewell; Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton (SPRC) – Don Jaffray; and United Way of Burlington and Greater Hamilton – Monica Quinlan. This research was funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research – Institute on Aging; Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-term Care; United Way of Burlington and Greater Hamilton; and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council through funding of the MCRI (Social and Economic Dimensions of an Aging Population).

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