Instrumental activities of daily living among community dwelling older adults : the perspectives of occupational therapists and older adults

Cheryl Toth, Nikki Tulliani, Karen Liu, Michelle Bissett

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Introduction: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is considered as the transitional stage between healthy aging and dementia. Individuals with MCI commonly display difficulties with instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). Understanding the most important and commonly performed IADL may enable occupational therapists to target therapy interventions. Objectives: To determine the most important, most frequently preformed and most cognitively demanding IADL completed by older adults to facilitate independent community living. Methods: Occupational therapists rated the importance of 30 IADL on a Likert scale ranging from ‘not at all important’ to ‘extremely important’. The 20 IADL considered the most important were then re-rated by older adults. Ratings of frequency of performance, and perceived cognitive effort of performance were also collected. Results: According to therapists (n = 36), the most important IADL were ‘medication management’, ‘making a phone call’, ‘making medical appointments’, and ‘making simple meals’. According to older adults (n = 30), ‘making medical appointments’, ‘paying bills’, ‘medication management’, and ‘grocery shopping’ were the most important IADL. Older adults identified ‘preparing breakfast’, ‘medication management’, ‘using a microwave’, and ‘preparing a hot beverage’ as the most frequently preformed. The IADL perceived by older adults to require the most cognitive effort were ‘Paying bills’, ‘grocery shopping’, and ‘making medical appointments’. Conclusion: Older adults are able to identify the important IADL which are required for community living. Therapists can use this information to target intervention planning when working with clients with MCI. This may be an important factor to enable older adults with MCI to remain in their own homes.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)136-136
Number of pages1
JournalAustralian Occupational Therapy Journal
Volume64
Issue numberSuppl. 2
Publication statusPublished - 2017

Keywords

  • activities of daily living
  • older people

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Instrumental activities of daily living among community dwelling older adults : the perspectives of occupational therapists and older adults'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this