RESUMO
An ageing population has implications for community-based health promotion and disease prevention. There is concern about older people who do not fit into existing programmes and services yet need minimal support to maintain independence. A study was designed to develop approaches to gain access to this hard to reach population, assess needs and design and test interventions to integrate them into the community. The study, informed by theories of health promotion and social support, used action research methods. Participant observation documented in field notes, together with case notes and clinical assessments, provided a rich source of qualitative and quantitative data. This article discusses the needs assessment. Over a 3-year period, public health nurses linked with community groups in a predominantly francophone, urban community to identify the target group. Key characteristics of the target group included limitations with instrumental activities of daily living and low levels of social support combined with stressful life situations that challenged adaptation. Three patterns of inadequate support were identified.
Assuntos
Avaliação Geriátrica , Pesquisa sobre Serviços de Saúde/métodos , Avaliação das Necessidades , Avaliação em Enfermagem/métodos , Pesquisa Metodológica em Enfermagem/métodos , Atividades Cotidianas , Idoso , Humanos , Estilo de Vida , Enfermagem em Saúde Pública , Apoio SocialRESUMO
Like the rest of Canada, the city of Ottawa is facing the "age wave"--a rapidly growing on-rush in the number of seniors. Indeed, Ottawa-Carleton has one of the fastest growing senior populations in the province of Ontario. About 70,000 of the residents, or 11 per cent of the population, are over 65, and this number is expected to increase to 15 per cent by the year 2011.
