title: [Depressive symptoms, invalidity and the use of professional home care by the elderly; replication and variations].
abstract: Dutch researchers found a twice as high prevalence of depression among older users of professional home care compared to non-users. They concluded that depression might be a causal factor in the demand for professional home care. One of our research-questions in a project called 'Professional home care and informal help for the elderly' is the replication of this study: in which way is depression related to professional home care utilization among the elderly? To answer this question we compared a subsample of 60+ years old people, who just received professional home care with a subsample of 60+ years old who didn't get professional home care with more or less the same need of care based on physical handicaps (difficulties in performing a number of ADL- and household activities). Although we also found a positive correlation between depression and physical limitations, our results didn't support another hypothesis: the difference of depression between users and non-users. This difference may be caused by a different research-design and the accuracy in the analysis.
authors.affiliation: Vakgroep Gezondheidswetenschappen, afd. Medische Sociologie Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.
authors.forename: G I
authors.initials: GI
authors.lastname: Kempen
authors.forename: T P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Suurmeijer
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D012107:Research Design
vernacular_title: Depressieve klachten, invaliditeit en het gebruik van professionele thuiszorg door ouderen; replicatie en nuances.