European ageing research in the social, behavioural and health areas: a multidimensional account.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Wahl HW
PROVIDER: S-EPMC5549214 | biostudies-other | 2013 Dec
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other
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Project description:Undertaking projects with European partners is an enterprising and rewarding activity, where societies can start to learn how to transfer knowledge and take advantage of best practices to further the benefits to health and social care service users. However, this can also be a challenging experience, more so when there is scanty guidance about the best way to conduct European partnership research. Using an on-going study of integrated care for older persons as an example (the PROCARE project), this paper provides an account of the methodological strengths and challenges of the qualitative approach used. It suggests that factors assisting a rigorous approach include sound and inclusive coordination, a strong research design, the construction of universally acceptable selection criteria, detailed interview schedules, and a transversal approach to data analysis.
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Project description:Effective designation of Protected Areas (PAs) requires the careful consideration of their social impacts as these are perceived by people. These refer to a variety of issues such as the distribution of power, social equity, social relations and more importantly the impact of PAs on human wellbeing. A number of studies have emerged in the past decade aiming to capture social impacts of PAs across the world through non-monetary assessments taking into consideration people's perceptions. Although Europe is the region with the largest in proportion number of Protected Areas across the world it is also a region with very limited scientific evidence on this topic. As the European Union is preparing to implement its new Biodiversity Strategyto ipkmplement this paper aims to provide the first comprehensive review of the literature regarding social impacts of European PAs and highlight new directions for current policy frameworks in the region. The paper focuses on the perceived non-economic social costs and benefits of PAs and identifies 7 key categories of social impacts. We propose that policy planning for biodiversity conservation in Europe should incorporate subjective assessments of social costs and benefits with the aim to achieve an increase of benefits for people and their equal distribution across social groups.
| S-EPMC7729820 | biostudies-literature
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| S-EPMC3892732 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionAgeing trajectories range from delayed ageing with extended health to accelerated ageing, with an increased risk of frailty. We evaluated the prevalence and prospective change between health states among community-dwelling European older adults.MethodsThis prospective study is a secondary analysis of DO-HEALTH, a randomized trial that included adults aged 70 years and older across 5 European countries. Healthy agers (HA) fulfilled the Nurses' Health Study healthy ageing criteria and accelerated agers were non-HA being at least pre-frail according to the Fried frailty criteria. We assessed the proportion of participants changing between health states over 4 assessments and evaluated the odds of changing to a more favourable category. To increase reliability and avoid regression to the mean, we averaged the first 2 years and compared them to the average of the last 2 years.ResultsOf 2,157 participants, 12.4% were excluded for meeting both healthy ageing and pre-frailty criteria simultaneously. Among the remaining 1,889 participants (mean age 75.1 years, 60.9% female), 23.1% were initially HA, 44.4% were non-HA but not pre-frail, and 32.6% were pre-frail or frail. Subsequently, 65.3% remained in the same health state, 12.0% improved to a healthier state, and 22.8% progressed to a less advantageous state. After adjusting for sex, study centre, treatment, and body mass index, each year of age was associated with 6% lower odds of improving health states. Women had 35% higher odds than men of following a disadvantageous trajectory.ConclusionWe observed dynamic trajectories of ageing where transitioning to a healthier state became less likely with advancing age and among women.
| S-EPMC9148895 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMany pregnancy and birth cohort studies investigate the health effects of early-life environmental contaminant exposure. An overview of existing studies and their data is needed to improve collaboration, harmonization, and future project planning.ObjectivesOur goal was to create a comprehensive overview of European birth cohorts with environmental exposure data.MethodsBirth cohort studies were included if they a) collected data on at least one environmental exposure, b) started enrollment during pregnancy or at birth, c) included at least one follow-up point after birth, d) included at least 200 mother-child pairs, and e) were based in a European country. A questionnaire collected information on basic protocol details and exposure and health outcome assessments, including specific contaminants, methods and samples, timing, and number of subjects. A full inventory can be searched on www.birthcohortsenrieco.net.ResultsQuestionnaires were completed by 37 cohort studies of > 350,000 mother-child pairs in 19 European countries. Only three cohorts did not participate. All cohorts collected biological specimens of children or parents. Many cohorts collected information on passive smoking (n = 36), maternal occupation (n = 33), outdoor air pollution (n = 27), and allergens/biological organisms (n = 27). Fewer cohorts (n = 12-19) collected information on water contamination, ionizing or nonionizing radiation exposures, noise, metals, persistent organic pollutants, or other pollutants. All cohorts have information on birth outcomes; nearly all on asthma, allergies, childhood growth and obesity; and 26 collected information on child neurodevelopment.ConclusionCombining forces in this field will yield more efficient and conclusive studies and ultimately improve causal inference. This impressive resource of existing birth cohort data could form the basis for longer-term and worldwide coordination of research on environment and child health.
| S-EPMC3261945 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND: Health and inequalities in health among inhabitants of European cities are of major importance for European public health and there is great interest in how different health care systems in Europe perform in the reduction of health inequalities. However, evidence on the spatial distribution of cause-specific mortality across neighbourhoods of European cities is scarce. This study presents maps of avoidable mortality in European cities and analyses differences in avoidable mortality between neighbourhoods with different levels of deprivation. METHODS: We determined the level of mortality from 14 avoidable causes of death for each neighbourhood of 15 large cities in different European regions. To address the problems associated with Standardised Mortality Ratios for small areas we smooth them using the Bayesian model proposed by Besag, York and Mollié. Ecological regression analysis was used to assess the association between social deprivation and mortality. RESULTS: Mortality from avoidable causes of death is higher in deprived neighbourhoods and mortality rate ratios between areas with different levels of deprivation differ between gender and cities. In most cases rate ratios are lower among women. While Eastern and Southern European cities show higher levels of avoidable mortality, the association of mortality with social deprivation tends to be higher in Northern and lower in Southern Europe. CONCLUSIONS: There are marked differences in the level of avoidable mortality between neighbourhoods of European cities and the level of avoidable mortality is associated with social deprivation. There is no systematic difference in the magnitude of this association between European cities or regions. Spatial patterns of avoidable mortality across small city areas can point to possible local problems and specific strategies to reduce health inequality which is important for the development of urban areas and the well-being of their inhabitants.
| S-EPMC4007807 | biostudies-other
Project description:BACKGROUND:Previous research suggests that the social network may play very different roles in relation to health in countries with differing welfare regimes. OBJECTIVE:The study aimed to assess the interplay between social network, socioeconomic position, and self-rated health (SRH) in European countries. METHODS:The study used cross-sectional data on individuals aged 50+ from the fourth wave of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and includes data from 16 countries. The outcome is poor SRH. All analyses are adjusted for age and stratified by gender. RESULTS:Low satisfaction with the social network was associated with poor SRH among women in all country groups, but predicted poor SRH among males in West/Central and Eastern Europe only. The results from the multivariable analysis showed an increased likelihood of poor SRH among those with relatively lower education, as well as among those with low satisfaction with the social network (women from all country groups and men from Western/Central and Eastern Europe). However, the results from interaction analysis show that poor SRH for those with lower relative position in educational level was greater among those with higher satisfaction with the social network among male and female participants from Northern Europe. The health of individuals who are highly satisfied with their social network is more associated with socioeconomic status in Northern Europe. CONCLUSIONS:This study highlights the significance of social network and socioeconomic gradients in health among the elderly in Europe.
| S-EPMC5912441 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundImprovement in medico-social services has increased life expectancy and population ageing in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It was estimated that about 163 million people aged 65 and older will be resident in SSA by 2050. There is inadequate ageing research capacity in SSA which necessitates this study to (a) identify a decade-long ageing research opportunities, challenges, and solutions, and (b) prioritize critical ageing research areas and methodologies relevant to the SSA.MethodsWe designed an e-Delphi protocol following the Reporting Guideline for Priority Setting of Health Research with Stakeholder. The stakeholders will be researchers, practitioners, older adults, and caregivers purposively selected through snowballing quota sampling to complete three rounds of e-Delphi surveys. Round 1 will involve open-ended questions derived from the study objectives. Responses from round 1 will be prepared as a checklist for stakeholders to rate during rounds 2 & 3, using a 9-point scale: low priority (1-3), moderate priority (4-6), and high priority (7-9). The criterion for reaching a consensus will be ≥ 70% of stakeholders rating an item "high priority" and ≤ 15% as "low priority." Quantitative data will be analysed using descriptive statistics, Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank test will be used to assess the stability of stakeholders' responses, and qualitative comments will be analysed using content analysis.Discussion and implicationsSetting aging research/practice priorities will help maximize the benefits of research investment and provide valuable direction for allocating public and private research funds to areas of strategic importance.
| S-EPMC11008814 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionThis scoping review examined the number, types and characteristics of journal publications on ageing in Singapore from 2008 to 2018 to determine how ageing research in medical and social domains in Singapore has transformed over time.MethodsUsing relevant search terms, articles were extracted from multiple databases and then screened and reviewed for eligibility and inclusion by independent reviewers. Data such as article title, authors, year of publication, name of journal, type of journal, study design and the kind of data used were charted from the included articles for evidence synthesis.ResultsSince 2008, there has been a steady increase in the number of publications on ageing in medical and social domains in Singapore. In the medical domain, publications on Ophthalmology (22%) made up the largest proportion of the existing medical literature on ageing in Singapore, followed by Physical Functioning (17%), which involved physiological measurements of physical well-being, and Geriatrics (16%). Non-medical publications comprised 38% of all the included publications, with publications on the social aspects of ageing (43%) forming the largest group in this cluster, followed by publications on Prevention (19%) and Healthcare services (18%). The study design was mostly observational (82%), with only 3% of interventional studies.ConclusionWhile ageing research had expanded in Singapore in the last decade, it was predominantly discipline specific and observational in design. As ageing issues are complex, with biology intersecting with psychology and sociology, we call for greater interdisciplinary collaboration, the conduct of more interventional studies, as well as more research in understudied and emerging areas.
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Project description:There is growing interest in the potential benefits of public involvement (PI) in health and social care research. However, there has been little examination of values underpinning PI or how these values might differ for different groups with an interest in PI in the research process. We aimed to explore areas of consensus and conflict around normative, substantive and process-related values underpinning PI.Mixed method, three-phase, modified Delphi study, conducted as part of a larger multiphase project.The UK health and social care research community.Stakeholders in PI in research, defined as: clinical and non-clinical academics, members of the public, research managers, commissioners and funders; identified via research networks, online searches and a literature review.We identified high levels of consensus for many normative, substantive and process-related issues. However, there were also areas of conflict in relation to issues of bias and representativeness, and around whether the purpose of PI in health and social care research is to bring about service change or generate new knowledge. There were large differences by group in the percentages endorsing the ethical justification for PI and the argument that PI equalises power imbalances. With regard to practical implementation of PI, research support infrastructures were reported as lacking. Participants reported shortcomings in the uptake and practice of PI. Embedding PI practice and evaluation in research study designs was seen as fundamental to strengthening the evidence base.Our findings highlight the extent to which PI is already embedded in research. However, they also highlight a need for 'best practice' standards to assist research teams to understand, implement and evaluate PI. These findings have been used in developing a Public Involvement Impact Assessment Framework (PiiAF), which offers guidance to researchers and members of the public involved in the PI process.
| S-EPMC3902382 | biostudies-literature