title: The lived experience of oldest-old rural adults.
abstract: The author elicited the lived experience of 19 oldest-old adults (13 women, all White, mean age 90.7 years, range 85-98 years) who lived alone in the rural Midwest to describe their everyday activities, concerns and struggles, and adaptive strategies. In-depth interviews (59 total) were audiotaped, transcribed, and analyzed in an interpretive phenomenological tradition of thematic analysis, interpretation of paradigm cases, and interpretation of exemplars. Participants described how historical, cultural, and environmental contexts shaped their everyday thoughts, activities, and what was meaningful to them. Findings can guide health care professionals to evaluate and develop community services and help significant others (family, friends, neighbors) understand what oldest-old rural adults need to remain at home.
authors.affiliation: Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, USA.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hinck
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008016:Life Change Events; D008019:Life Style; D008132:Loneliness; D008297:Male; D015146:Midwestern United States; D011788:Quality of Life; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012424:Rural Population