Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Older, Online And First: Recommendations For Retention And Success, Cathy Stone, Sarah Elizabeth O'Shea

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The university student population in Australia contains increasing numbers of older students returning to learning after a significant gap in their educational journey. Many are choosing to enrol online to combine their studies with other time-consuming responsibilities. This article examines the nature of this online student experience with a focus on those aged 25 and over who are the first in their families to embark on university studies. Drawing on interviews conducted with both staff and students operating in this virtual space, as well as other related research and literature, this article offers recommendations to higher education institutions and educators …

Inhibitors To Exercise And Health Promotion Programs For The Older Person With Diabetes, Rebekkah Middleton, Lorna Moxham, Dominique R. Parrish

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Diabetes care incurs a high cost burden, and is one of the main geriatric syndromes along with its related complications. To effectively counter this, healthcare needs to be proactive in establishing exercise and health promotion programs that promote healthy and active ageing.

Is It My Job? The Role Of Rns In The Assessment And Identification Of Delirium In Hospitalized Older Adults: An Exploratory Qualitative Study, Miriam Coyle, Pippa Burns, Victoria Traynor

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Delirium is characterized by acute and fluctuating cognitive decline, which is often missed in older adults who are assumed to be experiencing age-related changes or dementia. Delirium affects up to 50% of hospitalized older adults. The aim of the current study was to (a) explore current practices of RNs in assessing and identifying delirium in hospitalized older adults and (b) inform new educational initiatives. Qualitative methods were adopted using eight semi-structured group interviews with 24 RNs. Thematic analysis revealed a dichotomy in practice where RNs described delirium assessment and identification as (a) It's Not My Job, (b) It is …

Total Diet Score As A Valid Method Of Measuring Diet Quality Among Older Adults, Joanna Russell, Victoria M. Flood, Ali Sadeghpour, Bamini Gopinath, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background and Objectives: This study aimed to determine the accuracy of a diet quality measurement tool, the Total Diet Score (TDS) using two validation methods; firstly the TDS calculated from a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was compared to the TDS calculated from weighed food records (WFRs); secondly the TDS was compared to a number of dietary biomarkers. Methods and Study Design: Data were collected from a population based cohort study located in the Blue Mountains region of Sydney, Australia. To compare dietary assessment tools, a sub sample of 75 subjects (aged 63 to 83 years) completed the FFQ and three, …

Comprehensive Gait Analysis Of Healthy Older People: Unveiling Reasons For Lack Of Long-Distance Walking, Mustafa M. Elhadi, Christina Ma, Duo Wong, Anson Wan, Winson Lee

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part B

Many older adults do not adhere to the recommended physical activity levels. This study examines the gait changes upon long-distance walking among healthy older adults. Gait tests of 24 adults aged 65 or more were conducted at the baseline, at the end of 30 and 60 minutes of treadmill walk. Spatial temporal, kinematic and kinetic gait data were computed. Perceived level of exertion was evaluated for each subject. Ten subjects (Group B) perceived higher exertion level than the remaining fourteen subjects (Group A). After walking, group B had significant reductions in dominant-side ankle joint range of motion and power, suggesting …

Too Much Medicine In Older People? Deprescribing Through Shared Decision Making, Jesse Jansen, Vasi Naganathan, Stacy M. Carter, Andrew J. Mclachlan, Brooke Nickel, Les Irwig, Carissa Bonner, Jenny Doust, Jim Colvin, Aine Heaney, Robin Turner, Kirsten Mccaffery

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Too much medicine is an increasingly recognised problem, and one manifestation is inappropriate polypharmacy in older people. Polypharmacy is usually defined as taking more than five regular prescribed medicines. It can be appropriate (when potential benefits outweigh potential harms) but increases the risk of older people experiencing adverse drug reactions, impaired physical and cognitive function, and hospital admission. There is limited evidence to inform polypharmacy in older people, especially those with multimorbidity, cognitive impairment, or frailty. Systematic reviews of medication withdrawal trials (deprescribing) show that reducing specific classes of medicines may decrease adverse events and improve quality of life. Two …

Navigating The Knowledge Sets Of Older Learners: Exploring The Concept Of Experiential Capital Amongst First-In-Family Mature Age Students, Sarah Elizabeth O'Shea

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper is based upon research with university students who were first in their family to come to university. The studies sought to explore how attending university impacted upon both the learners and their families, particularly the intergenerational implications of this attendance. Drawing on in-depth interviews conducted with older university students, this paper will focus on how this mature cohort articulated the ways in which they drew upon life and work experiences in their transition to university. The research indicates that these learners had access to additional capitals in the higher education environment including what has been termed as 'experiential …

Food Insecurity And Poor Diet Quality Are Associated With Reduced Quality Of Life In Older Adults, Joanna C. Russell, Victoria M. Flood, Heather Yeatman, Jie Jin Wang, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the relationships of food security and diet quality with health related quality of life (HRQoL) in a cohort of older Australians. Methods: Data were collected as part of the Blue Mountains Eye Study, a cohort study of community-living individuals aged 49 years and over. A 12-item food security survey, the Short-form 36-item (SF-36) health survey, assessing four physical and four mental domains of HRQoL, and a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) were completed by 2642 participants. The Total Diet Score (TDS) (maximum score 20) measured diet quality based on food intake from …

Navigating The Knowledge Sets Of Older Learners: Exploring The Capitals Of First-Infamily Mature Age Students, Sarah Elizabeth O'Shea

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper is based upon research with Australian students who were the first in their family to come to university. The studies sought to explore how attending university impacted upon both the learners and their families, particularly the intergenerational implications of this attendance. Drawing on indepth interviews conducted with older university students enrolled in a medium sized regional university, this paper will focus on how this mature cohort articulated the ways in which they drew upon life and work experiences during their transition to university. Applying the Community Cultural Framework (Yosso, 2005) this article proposes that these learners brought a …

Building Characterisation And Retrofit Decision Support-Tools For Upgrading Homes Of Low-Income Older Australians, Paul Cooper, Clayton Mcdowell, Michael P. Tibbs, Georgios Kokogiannakis, Laia Ledo Gomis, Stephen C. Choi

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

This paper describes the development and implementation of a comprehensive methodology to select and implement energy efficiency upgrades to the homes of low-income, older (>60 years) Australians. This work was conducted as part of a project entitled, 'Energy Efficiency in the 3rd Age (EE3A)", which targeted lowincome older residents in the Illawarra Region of NSW, Australia, and was funded by an Australian Federal Government 'Low Income Energy Efficiency Program (LIEEP)' grant for AUD2.3M. The project included a social marketing and behaviour change component engaging ~650 households, and a retrofit program for a subset of ~183 of these homes. Households …

Sequential Processing In Young And Older Adults In The Equiprobable Auditory Go/Nogo Task, Robert J. Barry, Frances M. De Blasio, Adele E. Cave

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: We recently proposed a sequential processing schema for the equiprobable auditory Go/NoGo task, based on a principal components analysis (PCA) of event-related potentials (ERPs) from a university student sample. Here we sought to replicate the schema, and use it to explore processing in well-functioning older adults. Methods: We compared behavioural responding and ERPs of 20 independent-living older adults (M_age = 68.2 years) to data from a sex- and handedness-matched group of university students (M_age = 20.4 years). ERPs had substantial latency differences between the groups, and hence were subjected to separate group temporal PCAs. Results: Component latencies …

Lift That Lid, Unscrew That Cap, Pull That Straw: The Challenges Of Hospital Food And Beverage Packaging For The Older User., Alison F. Bell, Karen L. Walton, Linda C. Tapsell, Alaster Yoxall

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Food and beverage packaging has been found to contribute to malnutrition amongst the older hospital patient. This paper examines the interaction of the older user and regular hospital food and beverage packaging and the role of strength and dexterity in relation to pack opening within a hospital context. Findings demonstrate that the most difficult packs to open require higher levels of dexterity than strength. Manufacturers need to incorporate both universal and transgenerational design principles to maximise pack 'openability' for the older user.

Perceived Value Of Using Energy Efficiently Among Low-Income Older Residents, Katherine A. Butler, Ross Gordon, Katherine Roggeveen, Gordon R. Waitt, Paul Cooper

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australia

Online Cognitive Training In Healthy Older Adults: A Preliminary Study On The Effects Of Single Versus Multi-Domain Training, Courtney C. Walton, Alexandra Kavanagh, Luke Downey, Justine Lomas, David A. Camfield, Con Stough

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

It has been argued that cognitive training may be effective in improving cognitive performance in healthy older adults. However, inappropriate active control groups often hinder the validity of these claims. Additionally there are relatively few independent empirical studies on popular commercially available cognitive training programs. The current research extends on previous work to explore cognitive training employing a more robust control group. Twenty-eight healthy older adults (age: M = 64.18, SD = 6.9) completed either a multi-faceted online computerised cognitive training program or trained on a simple reaction time task for 20 minutes a day over a 28 day period. …

Lean Body Mass Associated With Upper Body Strength In Healthy Older Adults While Higher Body Fat Limits Lower Extremity Performance And Endurance, Karen E. Charlton, Marijka Batterham, Kelly Langford, Jenna Lateo, Erin Brock, Karen L. Walton, Philippa M. Lyons-Wall, Katie Eisenhauer, Nick Green, Cameron Mclean

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Impaired strength adversely influences an older person's ability to perform activities of daily living. A cross-sectional study of 117 independently living men and women (age = 73.4 9.4 year; body mass index (BMI) = 27.6 4.8 kg/m2) aimed to assess the association between body composition and: (1) upper body strength (handgrip strength, HGS); (2) lower extremity performance (timed up and go (TUG) and sit to stand test (STS)); and (3) endurance (6-minute walk (SMWT). Body composition (% fat; lean body mass (LBM)) was assessed using bioelectrical impedance. Habitual physical activity was measured using the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire …

Water Water Everywhere And Not A Drop To Drink: The Challenge Of Bottled Water Provision To Older Users In Hospitals, Alison F. Bell, Karen L. Walton, Linda C. Tapsell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Food and beverage packaging has been found to contribute to malnutrition amongst the older hospital patient. Reliance on bottled water as a hydration source for hospital patients is a growing phenomenon. This paper examines the interaction of the older user and bottled water packaging supplied in NSW hospitals. Findings demonstrate that water bottles are among the most difficult packs to open by older users and require high levels of hand strength. The provision of plastic bottled water in hospitals needs to be evaluated for system effectiveness: hydration intake, user experience and cost effectiveness.

If At First You Don't Succeed: Older Consumers And Hospital Food & Beverage Packaging - A Matter Of Try, Try And Try Again!, Alison F. Bell, Karen L. Walton, Nicola Westblade, Kate Morson, Jacqueline S. Chevis, Leire Harries, Alaster Yoxall

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

‘Openability’ of food and beverage packaging has been shown to be problematic for older consumers. Pressure on resources has seen the use of packaged food and beverages increase in Hospitals within the NSW region of Australia. Studies at the University of Wollongong have shown that not only is Hospital food & beverage packaging problematic, difficulty opening it was identified as a barrier to nutritional intake.

Given the serious nature of the problem, a series of studies have been undertaken by the University of Wollongong and Sheffield Hallam University, to evaluate the issues surrounding the ‘openability’ of this packaging in an …

Prevalence And Risk Factors Of Food Insecurity Among A Cohort Of Older Australians, Joanna Russell, Victoria M. Flood, Heather Yeatman, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective

With ongoing national concern about food security, the aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of food insecurity and to identify associated characteristics in a cohort of older Australians.

Design, setting and participants

The Blue Mountains Eye Study is a cohort study of community living participants aged 49 + years. The 12-item food security survey was completed by 3068 participants in the cross sectional study which comprised 2335 survivors from baseline and the recruitment of an additional 1174 eligible residents.

Main outcome measures

Prevalence of self reported food insecurity was calculated and multivariate logistic regression provided odds …

Eyes-Closed Vs. Eyes-Open Eeg In Young And Older Adults, Robert Barry, Frances M. De Blasio, Adele E. Cave

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the 17th World Congress of Psychophysiology (IOP2014) of the International Organization of Psychophysiology (IOP) Hiroshima, Japan, September 23rd to 27th, 2014

Home-Based Dietetic Intervention Improves Nutritional Status Post Hospital Discharge In Older People, A H. Hamirudin, A Carrie, K Charlton, K Walton, L Tapsell, Marianna Milosavljevic, G Pang, J Potter

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Abstract of poster that presented at 20th International Congress of Nutrition, Granada, September 2013.

The Effects Of Spending Time Outdoors In Daylight On The Psychosocial Wellbeing Of Older People And Family Carers: A Comprehensive Systematic Review Protocol, Victoria Traynor, Ritin Fernandez, Katherine Caldwell

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Review question/objective The overall objective of this research is to undertake a systematic review of the effects of spending time outdoors in daylight on the psychosocial wellbeing of older adults and family carers. The specific questions to be addressed are: Which aspects of psychosocial wellbeing are affected by spending time outdoors in daylight in older adults and family carers? To what extent is spending time outdoors in the daylight effective in improving aspects of psychosocial wellbeing in older adults and family carers?

Dairy Consumption And The Risk Of 15-Year Cardiovascular Disease Mortality In A Cohort Of Older Australians, Jimmy Chun Yu Louie, Victoria M. Flood, George Burlutsky, Anna M. Rangan, Timothy P. Gill, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

The effects of habitual dairy consumption and the risk of 15-year cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality in a cohort of older Australians were investigated. Participants (n = 2900) completed a validated 145-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to investigate associations between tertiles of the dairy consumption, including low/reduced fat dairy, whole fat dairy and their ratio (ratioLF/WF), and risk of mortality from coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke or combined CVD. There were 548 recorded cases of CVD mortality in this cohort. For total dairy intake, a reduction in risk of CVD was only seen in …

Estimation Of Dietary Flavonoid Intake And Cognitive Performance In Older Adults With Alzheimer's Type Dementia, Katherine Caldwell, Karen E. Charlton, Steven J. Roodenrys

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at The Nutrition Society of Australia and Nutrition Society of New Zealand 2013 Joint Annual Scientific Meeting, 4-6 December 2013, Brisbane, Australia

The Asthma Knowledge And Perceptions Of Older Australian Adults: Implications For Social Marketing Campaigns, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: The purpose of this research is to gain an understanding of the asthma perceptions of older adults and identify gaps in their asthma knowledge. Methods: In regional New South Wales, Australia, a stratified, random sample of 4066 adults, aged 55 years and over, both with and without an asthma diagnosis, completed a survey based on the Health Belief Model about asthma knowledge and perceptions. Results: Almost half of the sample had experienced symptoms of breathlessness in the past four weeks. Breathlessness was a predictor of lower health ratings and poorer mood. Older adults reported low susceptibility to developing asthma. …

Asthma In Older Adults: The Need For Asthma Health Promotion Interventions, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Asthma is a serious health issue for older adults. Among Australians aged 55 years and older, asthma prevalence, morbidity, and mortality are relatively high by international comparison and compared to other age groups. As people age, the diagnosis of asthma becomes more complicated, primarily due to comorbid conditions. Treatment and self-management are also more difficult in this age group due to the different medications prescribed for multiple conditions. At the same time, older adults do not perceive that they are susceptible to developing asthma, and they do not consider asthma to be a particularly serious disease, especially compared to other …

Usability Testing Of Asthmawise With Older Adults, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Don Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

There are many reasons why online self-management education is attractive to both patients and providers. AsthmaWise, an online self-management program, was developed using a Moodle platform, to enable older adults to learn asthma self-management skills. This study aimed to improve AsthmaWise through conducting: usability testing with a sample of end users; a cognitive walk-through undertaken by an independent health researcher; and assessment of content readability. A Perceived Health Web Site Usability Questionnaire score of 67% was achieved, indicating that there were usability issues that needed to be addressed. The cognitive walk-through and readability assessment identified unique issues that were not …

Promoting Asthma Awareness To Older Adults: Formative Research For A Social Marketing Campaign, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The limited existing research on the asthma perceptions of older adults suggests that this population perceives asthma to be a childhood disease and, therefore, believe that they are not susceptible to developing the condition as an adult. The asthma mortality rate is much higher for older adults than for children, and there is considerable negative impact on health-related quality of life. However, health promotion regarding asthma is rarely aimed at this population. To address this issue, social marketing campaign messages and materials about asthma were developed for an older adult population based on quantitative survey data. Through a series of …

Where Do Older Australians Receive Their Health Information? Health Information Sources And Their Perceived Reliability, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Chronic disease prevalence is increasing, in part due to the ageing population, adding further pressure to Australia's over-stretched primary health care services. While patients are encouraged to self-manage their chronic disease(s) in order to minimise the impact on their day-to-day functioning, little is known about where older adults receive health information and their perceptions of the reliability of these sources. Such knowledge would facilitate the development of self-management support strategies using health information sources that are acceptable to older adults. Methods: A cross-sectional design was utilised to investigate where older adults receive their health information and their perceptions of …

Is Quality Of Diet Associated With The Microvasculature? An Analysis Of Diet Quality And Retinal Vascular Calibre In Older Adults, Bamini Gopinath, Victoria M. Flood, Jie Jin Wang, Elena Rochtchina, Tien Y. Wong, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

It is unknown whether diet quality is associated with microvascular structure. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between diet quality, reflecting adherence to dietary guidelines, with retinal microvascular calibre in older adults. The dietary data of 2720 Blue Mountains Eye Study participants, aged 50þ years, were collected using a semi-quantitative FFQ. A modified version of the Healthy Eating Index for Australians was developed to determine total diet scores (TDS). Fundus photographs were taken and retinal vascular calibre measured using computer-assisted techniques and summarised. After adjusting for age, sex, BMI, mean arterial blood pressure, smoking, serum glucose, leucocyte count …

'Get Your Life Back': Process And Impact Evaluation Of An Asthma Social Marketing Campaign Targeting Older Adults, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Asthma in older adults is underdiagnosed and poorly self-managed. This population has little knowledge about the key symptoms, the prevalence among older adults, and the serious consequences of untreated asthma. The purpose of this study was to undertake a multifaceted evaluation of a social marketing campaign to increase asthma awareness among older adults in a regional Australian community. Methods: A cohort of older adults in an intervention region (n = 316) and a control region (n = 394) were surveyed immediately prior to and following the social marketing campaign. Campaign awareness, message recall, materials recognition, and actions taken as …