title: The impact of chronic illness on workforce participation and the need for assistance with household tasks and personal care by older Australians.
abstract: People, along with their families, feel the impact of chronic illness in many areas of their lives. It has been known that those with chronic illness leave the workforce earlier than their peers, have lower incomes and often need additional support to manage their health and lives. However, limited information is available about whether chronic illness is already present prior to retirement, or has developed subsequently. Similarly, we know little about what personal and household assistance is needed by people with chronic illness. In this study, a random sample of 10 000 members of National Seniors Australia, stratified by age and state of residence, were surveyed by post between August and September 2009 and asked about their chronic illnesses along with their age at diagnosis. In addition, participants were asked about their need for assistance with everyday household tasks and personal care. Responses were received from 4574 respondents, a response rate of 45.7%. Of those responding, 82.2% reported having at least one chronic illness at the time of the survey. The study confirms that ill health leads to earlier retirement from the workforce, and those who are sickest require more assistance with their household tasks and personal care. Each additional chronic illness present at age 50 reduced working life by a year, and each present at age 60 by 0.7 years. Diabetes, arthritis and depression were significantly related to earlier retirement. The impact was greatest for both continued workforce participation and need for assistance for those suffering from depression or anxiety. The relationships between health, workforce participation and need for assistance in daily activities are complex. Further research is required to uncover this complexity; nevertheless, the findings highlight the need to review the adequacy of current social and health policy for this particular population.
authors: Menzies Centre for Health Policy, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. laurann.yen@anu.edu.au
authors: Laurann
authors: L
authors: Yen
authors: Ian
authors: I
authors: McRae
authors: Yun-Hee
authors: YH
authors: Jeon
authors: Beverley
authors: B
authors: Essue
authors: Pushpani
authors: P
authors: Herath
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D001315:Australia; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016272:Occupational Health; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D058992:Social Participation / Q000523:psychology*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology*