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Trends in suicide rates of the elderly in Austria, 1970-2004: an analysis of changes in terms of age groups, suicide methods and gender
- Authors:
- KAPUSTA Netsor D., ETZERSDORFER Elmar, SONNECK Germot
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 22(5), May 2007, pp.438-444.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Suicides of the elderly (persons aged 65 and older) make up a large proportion of total suicides. Since suicide rates of the elderly are highest in western populations, addressing them as a risk group in prevention plans has been recommended. In order to assess possible approaches to prevention strategies, this study examines high-risk groups of the elderly. The authors examined official statistics on suicides that occurred in Austria between 1970-2004 (18,101 Suicides of the elderly). The authors analyzed time trends and differences in suicide methods as well as in age groups and both genders of the elderly. Three major high-risk groups were identified: elderly male suicides by firearms; elderly female suicides by poisoning, which occur more often with increasing age; and suicides of both genders by jumping from heights. Besides conducting treatment of psychiatric disorders of the elderly, restricting the means to commit suicide may help to prevent it among the elderly. Such specific prevention strategies should be implemented in national suicide prevention plans for the high-risk groups identified in this study.
Impact of the COVID‐19 lockdown on system usage of an innovative care support system and the mood of older adults
- Authors:
- MAYER Christopher C., et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 37(3), 2022,
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: Older age is a substantial risk factor for serious illness from COVID-19. Moreover, isolation and quarantine are more likely to cause physical, mental and social deprivation in older age. Information and Communication Tools are means to prevent such consequences. Objective: This study aimed therefore to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown measures on the usage of an innovative technical support system deployed in Austria (AT) and Luxembourg (LU) consisting of several tools that allow independent living in older age. Methods: Thirty-nine older adults (11 male; 28 female) with a mean age of 74.3 (SD 7.3) years were included in the study. In total, 18 older people were recruited in AT and 21 in LU. Descriptive statistics were computed, and longitudinal models were fitted for technology use and self-reported mood. Results: The number of older adults using the system significantly decreased from the time before lockdown (39 [100%]) to during lockdown (26 [67%]) and thereafter (23 [59%]; p < 0.001). Multiple comparisons revealed a significant reduction in the average number of events for calendar and medication tools, but a substantial increase in communication and messaging events. Self-reported well-being declined during the lockdown and increased afterwards back to baseline levels. Conclusion: Communication was the main reason for using the support system. In addition, strategies and interventions are essential to support older adults when using information technology in the prolonged phases of the pandemic to sustain independent living. (Edited publisher abstract)
Growing older in the community: European projects in housing and planning
- Authors:
- BRECH Joachim, POTTER Philip
- Publisher:
- Anchor Housing Trust/Wohnbund
- Publication year:
- 1994
- Pagination:
- 197p.,tables,illus.,bibliogs.
- Place of publication:
- Oxford
Research report looking at how meeting the care and housing needs of older people, to enable them to live in the community for as long as possible, is being tackled by European countries.
Caught between two fronts: successful aging in the time of COVID-19
- Authors:
- RICHTER Lukas, HEIDINGER Theresa
- Journal article citation:
- Working with Older People, 24(4), 2020, pp.273-280.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic poses a great challenge for older people both in terms of the severity of the disease and the negative consequences of social distancing. Assumptions about negative effects on the lives of the elderly, affecting dimensions of successful aging (such as the preservation of social relationships), have thus far been hypothetical and have lacked empirical evidence. The aim of this paper is to shed empirical light on the effects of COVID-19 on the everyday life of older people against the background of the concept of successful aging. Design/methodology/approach: Data of a standardized, representative telephone survey with residents of Lower Austria, a county of Austria, were used for this secondary analysis. The sample included 521 persons of 60 years of age and older. For this paper, contingency analyses (χ² coefficients, z-tests using Bonferroni correction) and unidimensional correlational analyses were calculated. Findings: The empirical data show that successful aging along the three dimensions of successful aging is a challenge in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic – leaving the elderly caught between two fronts. Originality/value: The present work focusses on a unique moment in time, describing the changes to the lives of Austrian elderly because of the social distancing measures imposed to protect against the spread of COVID-19. These changes are discussed in the theoretical framework of successful aging. (Edited publisher abstract)
Regulating the delivery of cash‐for‐care payments across Europe
- Authors:
- GORI Cristiano, LUPPI Matteo
- Journal article citation:
- Social Policy and Administration, 53(4), 2019, pp.567-578.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The article aims to understand how governments across Europe have modified the regulation of the delivery of cash‐for‐care schemes (CfCs) to dependent older people since the beginning of the century. In our terminology, the regulation of the CfCs delivery defines the norms, rules, and practices that public actors adopt to manage how beneficiaries can use the benefits. To discuss the regulation of CfCs delivery, an original framework is employed that take three analytical dimensions into account: the degrees of freedom in benefits' utilization (“CfCs utilization” dimension), the provision of information/orientation/advices/counselling to older people and families (“professional support” dimension), and the relationship between the delivery of CfCs and the delivery of the other publicly funded long‐term care inputs (“care system” dimension). The analysis adopts a comparative perspective, looking at six countries—Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, France, Germany, and England. Among various findings, the main one consists in showing that there has been a shared and increased interest in consolidating the regulation of CfCs delivery. This trend has been mostly directed towards the new policy aim of strengthening the professional support, a goal underestimated in the past, when this dimension was not a major topic of both debate and practice concerning CfCs across Europe. (Edited publisher abstract)
Analysing equity in the use of long-term care in Europe
- Authors:
- RODRIGUES Ricardo, ILINCA Stefania, SCHMIDT Andrea
- Publisher:
- European Commission
- Publication year:
- 2014
- Pagination:
- 39
- Place of publication:
- Brussels
There are significant differences across social protection systems in Europe in the scope, breadth and depth of coverage of the risk to need long-term care in old-age. Together with other factors, such as education, household structure or societal values regarding care for frail older people, these differences can have a significant impact on the use of long-term care. Using SHARE data, this Research Note compares differences between European countries in the use of long-term care across income groups, for older people living at home. It analyses not only inequalities in the use of long-term care, but also differences in use that persist after differences in need have been taken into consideration, i.e. horizontal inequity. For this purpose, concentration indices, concentration curves and horizontal inequity indices are estimated for home care services and informal care. The countries analysed here are Austria, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, France, Denmark, Greece, Belgium and Czech Republic. The findings suggest that differences in use of home care services across income groups mostly reflect differences in need between those same groups. For informal care, the differences in use persist even after accounting for needs, and less affluent individuals are much more likely to use informal care. Some possible causes for these differences and policy implications are considered.
Livindhome: living independently at home: reforms in home care in 9 European countries
- Authors:
- ROSTGAARD Tina, et al
- Publisher:
- Danish National Centre for Social Research
- Publication year:
- 2011
- Pagination:
- 252p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Copenhagen
This report presents findings from the project Living Independently at Home: Reforms in organisation and governance of European home care for older people and people with disabilities (LIVINDHOME). The study provides an overview of recent and current reforms in the organisation and governance of home care systems in nine European countries, and analyses the intended and unintended results of these reforms, in particular, how the reforms have affected the organisation, supply and quality of care. The focus of the study is home care for older people and for people with disabilities. In countries that have more family-oriented welfare traditions (Austria, Germany, Italy, Ireland), comprehensive approaches to long-term care have started to develop only relatively recently. Despite increases in funding for long-term care, home care provision in Italy and Ireland remains highly fragmented, with major local variations in access to services. The second group of countries (Denmark, England, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) have had more or less comprehensive home care services in place for many years. These have been delivered by local authorities under a legislative framework set by central government. Reforms have here involved the introduction of market- and consumer-related mechanisms into the supply and delivery of home care.
Ageing and health status in adults with intellectual disabilities: results of the European Pomona II study
- Authors:
- HAVEMAN Meindert, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 36(1), March 2011, pp.49-60.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
POMONA II was a European Commission funded public health project collecting information from 14 countries using a set of key health indicators specifically relevant for people with intellectual disabilities. This research focused on age-specific differences relating to environmental and lifestyle factors and the 17 medical conditions measured by the POMONA Checklist of Health Indicators. The article describes how information was collected using the POMONA Health Interview Survey and Evaluation Form from a sample of 1,253 participants in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. It then presents the results of the analysis, with tables showing characteristics of people with intellectual disabilities in the study, frequency of social contacts with relatives or friends according to age, lifestyle risk factors in people with intellectual disabilities according to age, and general and age-specific prevalence rates of health problems. The authors discuss how healthy older adults with intellectual disabilities are with regard to lifestyle factors, and whether there are health disparities between older adults with and without intellectual disabilities. They note that some evidence of health disparities was found for older people with intellectual disabilities, particularly in terms of under diagnosed or inadequately managed preventable health conditions.
Suicidal ideation and its correlates among elderly in residential care homes
- Authors:
- MALFENT Daniela, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 25(8), August 2010, pp.843-849.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Studies have shown that the highest suicide rates are found among the elderly, with suicidal ideation prevalent in long-term care facilities. Despite these facts most residents show no signs of suicidal ideation. However, there is a lack of information on which factors protect against suicidal thoughts among the elderly. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation with risk and protective factors among older residential care home residents in Vienna. Participants included 129 residents, aged 60 and older, from 15 Viennese residential care homes, who completed a self-report questionnaire containing socio-demographic factors, physical health, mental health, and protective factors like self-efficacy, and internal locus of control as well as satisfaction with life. They were also asked about active and passive suicidal thoughts. Results indicated active suicidal ideation during the last month in 7% of the elderly, 11% reported active suicidal ideation during the past year. Depressive symptoms and current psychotherapeutic treatment were important predictors. In conclusion, the authors suggest that research and prevention strategies could not only target risk, but also include protective factors.
Workplace health promotion in domiciliary care: an Austrian project
- Authors:
- HICKEL Susanne, PALKOVICH Tamara
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Integrated Care, 13(4), August 2005, pp.26-33.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
This article reports practical experiences with workforce health promotion in domiciliary care arising from an ongoing EU-funded Austrian project. The auuthors review research-based findings on working conditions and indicate starting points for health-promoting measures. We describe the approach, and give insight into challenges and obstacles to workplace health promotion in this field of work. The issues may have strong relevance for the UK.