Effectiveness of telecare in elderly populations-a comparison of three settings.
The primary aim of this study was to assess the level of satisfaction with 3 types of formal care systems of the elderly: (1) a day care center, (2) a nursing home, and (3) telecare service in a group of oldest frail elderly, and to describe the characteristics of the population using the services. The study involved a population of 162 oldest elderly using 3 different types of formal care services. Study participants were asked to complete a questionnaire, investigating socio-demographic characteristics and degree of overall satisfaction with the service, as well as eliciting possible suggestions for improvement. In our study, nearly all subjects using the telecare service were satisfied or very satisfied (98.5%), as compared to 75.3% of those residing in a nursing home, and 76.5% of those attending the day care center. This result confirms the findings of previous studies on elderly subjects satisfaction with telecare services. Telecare, therefore, seems to be the service achieving the greatest levels of satisfaction, a service that can also be used by low-income subjects, by whom it is also perceived as a source of social support.
Onor
Maria L
ML
Department of Clinical, Morphological and Technological Sciences, U.C.O. of Clinical Psychiatry, University of Trieste, Italy. marialuisa.onor@libero.it
Trevisiol
Marianna
M
Urciuoli
Ornella
O
Misan
Shai
S
Bertossi
Francesca
F
Tirone
Gabriella
G
Aguglia
Eugenio
E
Pascolo-Fabrici
Elisabetta
E
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003631:Day Care, Medical; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017216:Telemedicine