Personal Life Approach: An Interactive Way of Understanding Older Adults' Participation in Activities Following Hospitalization

To explore factors that support or inhibit participation in daily activities amongst older adults who have returned home following hospitalization. An exploratory qualitative design was used to gather information from a sample of older adults. Participants were recruited during their hospital stay f...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Gerontologist 2016-06, Vol.56 (3), p.504-513
Main Authors: Pritchard, Elizabeth, Warren, Narelle, Barker, Anna, Brown, Ted, Haines, Terry
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Activities of Daily Living
Adaptation, Psychological
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Attitude to Health
Disability Evaluation
Discharge
English language
Female
Health
Home health care
Hospitalization
Humans
Internal-External Control
Interpersonal Relations
Interviews as Topic
Male
Medical personnel
Older people
Optimism
Participation
Patient Discharge
Personal Autonomy
Qualitative Research
Rehabilitation
Religiosity
Social Support
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:To explore factors that support or inhibit participation in daily activities amongst older adults who have returned home following hospitalization. An exploratory qualitative design was used to gather information from a sample of older adults. Participants were recruited during their hospital stay from acute and rehabilitation wards in Victoria, Australia. Semistructured interviews were carried out in the participants' home within 6 weeks of discharge. Data were analyzed through thematic analysis. Participants (n = 21) were aged ≥65 years (mean 82 years [SD 8.5]), 57% were female (n = 11) and 76% with English as their first language (n = 16). Thematic analysis identified one primary theme (personal life approach) moderated by spirituality and two subthemes; interpretation of physical and mental abilities, and social interactions. The life approach acted as a filter through which participants interpreted their abilities and social interactions that either supported or inhibited their return to participation after a stay in hospital. The findings suggest that clinicians need to consider the individual's approach to life in their recovery following hospitalization. This approach can influence their return to participation in activities and potentially be supported (towards higher levels of optimism) by health professionals to enhance participation in activities postdischarge.
ISSN:0016-9013
1758-5341
DOI:10.1093/geront/gnu115