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Older Adults' Perceptions of Frailty Language: A Scoping Review
Pamela Durepos1,2, Mariko Sakamoto1,3, Kyla Alsbury1,4
1Canadian Frailty Network Interdisciplinary Fellowship Program, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Summary
Older adults perceive frailty as inevitable decline, a generalizing label, and impacting healthcare. Healthcare professionals should use holistic, person-first, and strengths-based approaches when discussing frailty.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Sociology of Health and Illness
- Public Health
Background:
- Growing interest in frailty conceptualization and diagnosis.
- Limited understanding of older adults' perceptions of the term 'frail' and its implications.
- Need to explore the lived experiences of frailty among community-dwelling older adults.
Purpose of the Study:
- To conduct a scoping review mapping primary studies on frailty language.
- To describe the meaning and perceptions of frailty among community-dwelling older adults.
- To identify the perceived implications of frailty language on health and healthcare utilization.
Main Methods:
- Scoping review methodology.
- Inclusion of eight primary studies.
- Thematic analysis to identify core themes.
Main Results:
- Theme 1: Frailty understood as inevitable age-related decline across multiple domains.
- Theme 2: Frailty perceived as a generalizing and stigmatizing label.
- Theme 3: Awareness of language impacts on health and healthcare seeking behaviors.
Conclusions:
- Healthcare professionals should adopt a holistic view of frailty, encompassing psychosocial and environmental factors.
- Recommendations include using person-first language and a strengths-based approach in clinical practice.
- Emphasizing respectful and empowering communication is crucial when discussing frailty with older adults.
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