Purpose: Medicare hospice is a valuable source of quality care at the end of life, but its lower use by racial minority groups is of concern. This study identifies factors associated with hospice use among urban Black and White nursing home (NH) decedents in the United States. Design and Methods: Multiple data sources are combined and multilevel…

Purpose: Older adults generally have an increased need for health care information. Whereas some use the Internet to look for this information, others use more traditional sources. This study gathered data from older adults to determine their health information needs, the perceived usefulness of sources of health information, and if there are…

Purpose: The Veterans Affairs or VA health care system is in the process of significantly expanding home health care (HOC) nationwide. We describe VA HHC use in 2003 for all VA HHC users from 2002; we examine whether VA utilization across a broad spectrum of services differed for a sample of VA HHC users and their propensity-score-matched…

Examined Food Stamp Program participation rates and reasons for nonparticipation in a survey of 2,242 elderly. Uncertainty or lack of knowledge about program eligibility was the most important reason for nonparticipation. Perceived stigma and transportation barriers were also factors. (JAC)

Used data from 1984 Supplement on Aging of the National Health Interview Survey to examine frequency of senior center attendance. Estimated multinomial logistic regression model to distinguish between persons who rarely, sometimes, and frequently attend. Found that more frequent users are older. Greater frequency was associated with lower income…

Used data from the 1982 National Long-Term Care Survey and Informal Caregivers Survey to create a descriptive profile which showed that informal caregivers were predominantly female, that a sizeable proportion were over age 65, and that a minority of caregivers used formal services. (Author/ABL)

Interviewed 88 community elderly about seeking help for psychiatric symptoms. The results showed low past professional utilization, perceptions of low future utilization, an overwhelming preference for general physicians as treatment providers, and a very low opinion of the effectiveness of mental health professionals. (JAC)

Analyzed data from 125 questionnaires completed by callers of telephone helpline specializing in Alzheimer's disease and related dementing illnesses. On average, 3.94 requests for information were made per call. Most common requests concerned home services, general information about dementia, information about adult day care, and support group…

Demonstrated that acquiescence response set can inflate estimates of agency awareness in needs assessment studies of elderly. Acquiescence did not appear to inflate estimates of service utilization or service need. Less educated respondents were no more likely to exhibit acquiescence than better educated respondents. Hypothesis that African…

Examines effects on health status and health services utilization of simultaneous participation by elderly persons (N=401) in family and neighbor network systems. Results showed the greatest health needs and highest rates of use of formal health services to be among the noncompensated relationships. (JAC)

Examined 373 programs providing eight types of services sponsored by the aging network in Massachusetts to determine which were utilized by mentally retarded elderly. Results from the mail survey indicated that 52 percent of the programs were actually utilized by this population. (Author/BHK)

Examined utilization of time-limited holiday hotline for outreach to lonely older persons. Grief and bereavement were primary themes of 306 calls from aged persons. Trained professionals and supervised students staffed the telephone bank and provided such services as responsive listening and community referrals. (Author/NB)

Estimated effect of variety of factors on the utilization of home help among the elderly in Sweden using a sample (n=421) of people 75 years and older. Results indicated physical functioning (instrumental activities of daily living) and living alone were most important. (Author/ABL)

Assesses applied relevance of research on home care, reviewing literature on predictors of use of home care services, experience of receiving home care, and efficacy studies. Notes that efficacy studies have not concluded that home care is less costly or better for quality of life of older adults when compared with institutional care. (Author/NB)

Surveyed patients and families who used hotline emergency service in ambulatory day treatment center for frail elderly. Results revealed appropriate use of service: Most calls required medical intervention, including hospitalization in 31 percent of cases. Findings suggest that 24-hour medical coverage is necessary and cost efficient. (Author/NB)