Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Asthmawise - A Field Of Dreams? The Results Of An Online Education Program Targeting Older Adults With Asthma, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Sandra Jones

Objectives: The aim of this study was to establish the feasibility and acceptability of an online asthma self-management program developed for older Australians with asthma. Methods: AsthmaWise, an internet education self-management program, was piloted for a 3-month period at the beginning of 2012. Participants were recruited using both online and offline strategies and were required to complete surveys, both pre- and post-intervention, in a repeated measures design. Results: Matched data were collected from 51 participants; the results showed AsthmaWise to be a feasible and acceptable method of delivering asthma education to the target population. Self-reported measures showed an increase in …

'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

Sandra Jones

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 …

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

Sandra Jones

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 …

The Devil Is In The Detail: Determining The Content Of An Internet Intervention For Older Adults With Asthma, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Sandra Jones

Introduction: The Internet can support people to self-manage their asthma, while overcoming barriers frequently found in primary care. A user-centred design process was utilised to explore the types of asthma information older adults perceived to be beneficial in helping them manage their asthma and the website features they felt were desirable for an asthma education website. Methods: A survey package was mailed to 9,000 adults aged 55 years and over, whose contact details had been obtained from the Australian Electoral Commission. Four focus groups were also conducted covering: asthma management; asthma Internet information; and website features. The Technology Acceptance Model …

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

Sandra Jones

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 …

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

Sandra Jones

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. …

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

Examining The Risk And Protective Factors That Influence Falls Among Native American Older Adults, Kelly Winjum

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The risk factors for falls and the adverse outcomes of falls have been well documented among the general older adult population. However, fall frequency, fall risk factors, and fall outcomes have rarely been studied among minority groups specifically. Furthermore, to date there are no known studies that exclusively examine falls among Native American older adults. The purpose of this study is to examine falls among Native American older adults, in order to understand the risk and protective factors for falling among this population, and to develop recommendations for intervention. The theoretical framework of the Disablement Process guides this study. The …

Provincial Paradoxes: 'At Home' With Older Gay Men In A Provincial Town Of The Antipodes, Gordon R. Waitt, Andrew W. Gorman-Murray

Gordon Waitt

In this paper we explore the importance of ‘home’ in the everyday lives of older gay men living in Townsville, a provincial town in tropical north Queensland. To do this we deploy the work of Alison Blunt and Robin Dowling (2006), who present a spatialised understanding of home. Drawing on interview materials with ten men who identified as gay, and who are also over forty years of age, we demonstrate that home is a crucial site in the production of their subjectivities. We argue that a spatialised understanding of home reveals paradoxical qualities of Townsville-as-home for older gay men. Furthermore, …

Combining The Health Belief Model And Social Marketing To Develop A Community-Level Campaign About Asthma For Older Adults, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Sandra Jones

This conceptual paper provides a rationale for combining health behaviour theory with a social marketing framework in order to develop a community-level asthma campaign for adults aged 55 years and older. The prevalence of asthma in older adults in Australia is approximately 10%, higher than in many other countries, and asthma mortality increases with age. In addition, older adults' perceptions of asthma causes and treatments are often inaccurate. Many older adults believe that asthma is a childhood disease and that the effects of the condition are relatively minor and would not impact on daily life. In order to address these …

Profiling The Silver Surfers: Which Older Australians Are Using The Internet?, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson

Sandra Jones

Abstract presented at the 10th national emerging researchers in ageing conference, 24-25 November 2011

Breathlessness Is Not A Normal Part Of Aging: Development And Testing Of Asthma Awareness Messages For Older Australians, Sandra C. Jones, Uwana Evers, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi, Sara Morgan, Michele Goldman

Sandra Jones

At least 420,000 Australian adults aged 55 years and over, or one in 10, currently have asthma (Australian Centre for Asthma Monitoring 2008). Asthma is under-diagnosed, often misdiagnosed, and undertreated in the older adult population in Australia (Gibson, McDonald and Marks 2010, Marks and Poulos 2005, Wilson et al 2001) as it is overseas. Contrary to the perception that asthma is a childhood disease, asthma can develop in older adults (Adams and Ruffin 2005). The risk of dying from asthma increases with age (AIHW 2010). While the overall mortality rate has decreased by almost 70% since 1989, much of this …

Assessing Alcohol Consumption In Older Adults: Looking For A Solution To Inform Evaluation Of Social Marketing Campaigns, Sandra C. Jones, Lance Barrie, Laura Robinson

Sandra Jones

Alcohol consumption in older people presents unique challenges due to changes in body composition, co-morbid conditions and associated mediations, as well as a reduction in metabolic capacity. As such, this generation has been identified as an at-risk group by the NHRMC (NHRMC, 2011). For the purpose of this paper "older" adults are individuals aged 65 years and over. The NHMRC produced guidelines for minimising the risks associated with alcohol consumption in 2001 (NHMRC, 2001). While the 2001 NHMRC guidelines did not provide specific recommendations regarding levels of consumption for older people the revised 2009 guidelines recommend, 'Older people are advised …

The Older Patient, The Doctor And The Trainee: Patients' Attitudes And Implications For Models Of Care, Andrew Bonney, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson

Sandra Jones

Aims & rationale/Objectives Population ageing poses major challenges for health systems. Additionally, training future general practitioners in the management of older and chronically ill patients is potentially hampered by the reluctance of these patients to consult trainees for chronic care. This paper reports a cross-sectional study investigating the attitudes of older patients to trainees, to inform strategies to improve older patient-trainee interaction. Methods The survey instrument was distributed to 1900 patients aged 60 and over from 38 training practices from five Australian states using a stratified, randomised cluster sampling process. Generalised estimating equation models were used for analysis. Principal findings …

Riding The Wave Or Paddling In The Shallows? Understanding Older Australians' Use Of The Internet, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Don Iverson, Peter Caputi

Sandra Jones

Issues addressed: Australia's ageing population is set to become an increasing burden on an already over-stretched primary health care system. Potential strategies to alleviate this pressure need to be investigated. Increased knowledge of older Australians? use of the internet would allow the appropriateness of online health intervention to be assessed. This initial, exploratory study examined the proportion of people aged 55 years and older who accessed the internet. It investigated their duration of use, level of comfort, use of the internet to seek health information and perceived reliability of information found on the internet. Methods: A paper based survey was …

Poor Nutritional Status Of Older Subacute Patients Predicts Clinical Outcomes And Mortality At 18 Months Of Follow-Up, K Charlton, C Nichols, S Bowden, Marianna Milosavljevic, K Lambert, L Barone, M Mason, M Batterham

Karen E. Charlton

Background/Objectives: Older malnourished patients experience increased surgical complications and greater morbidity compared with their well-nourished counterparts. This study aimed to assess whether nutritional status at hospital admission predicted clinical outcomes at 18 months follow-up. Subjects/Methods: A retrospective analysis of N=2076 patient admissions (65+ years) from two subacute hospitals, New South Wales, Australia. Analysis of outcomes at 18 months, according to nutritional status at index admission, was performed in a subsample of n=476. Nutritional status was determined within 72 h of admission using the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA). Outcomes, obtained from electronic patient records, included hospital readmission rate, total Length of …

Older Rehabilitation Patients Are At High Risk Of Malnutrition: Evidence From A Large Australian Database, Karen Charlton, Clare Nichols, Steven Bowden, Kelly Lambert, Lilliana Barone, Michelle Mason, Marianna Milosavljevic

Karen E. Charlton

No abstract provided.

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 …