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Home health service utilization by Hispanic elderly immigrants: a longitudinal study
1School of Nursing, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030.
Home Health Care Services Quarterly
|December 9, 1992
Summary
Factors like age, physical health, and daily function significantly predict home health service use among Hispanic elderly immigrants. These findings highlight key areas for targeted support and intervention in elder care.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Public Health
- Sociology
Background:
- Home health services (HHS) are crucial for aging populations, particularly immigrant communities.
- Understanding factors influencing HHS utilization is vital for effective healthcare planning.
- Hispanic elderly immigrants represent a unique demographic with specific health and social needs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify factors associated with the utilization of home health services (HHS) among Hispanic elderly immigrants.
- To examine the relationship between predisposing, enabling, and illness level factors and HHS use.
- To determine the predictive power of demographic, health, and functional variables on HHS utilization.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study design with data collected in 1983 and 1988.
- Participant sample: 156 Hispanic elderly immigrants initially, with 76 survivors in the follow-up.
- Utilized the Older Americans Resources and Services (OARS) questionnaire for data collection.
Main Results:
- Predisposing and illness level factors were significantly associated with HHS use.
- Enabling factors did not show a significant relationship with HHS use.
- Discriminant analysis revealed that age, ADL function, and Self Assessed Health were the strongest predictors, accounting for 54% of the variance in HHS use.
Conclusions:
- Age, Activities of Daily Living (ADL) function, and Self Assessed Health are key determinants of home health service utilization in this population.
- Illness level and predisposing characteristics play a role, while enabling factors appear less critical.
- Findings underscore the importance of comprehensive health and functional assessments for predicting home health service needs in elderly Hispanic immigrants.