Home Health Care and Quality of Life of Patients With Alzheimer’s Disease

An Integrated Conceptual Model of Quality of Life for Older Adults Based on a Synthesis of the Literature

“…Personal autonomy refers to such things as the ability to make choices, ability to exercise control, and the ability to compromise and negotiate one's own environment and accept choices. This is consistent with interpretations by several other authors who emphasize fostering autonomy and choice as well as respecting confidentiality, privacy, dignity, and human rights (Albert et al 1997;Becker et al 1993;Bury and Holme 1990;Gamroth et al 1995;Kane 1998Kane , 2001Keigher et al 2000;Lassey and Lassey 2001;Marinelli and Plummer 1999). Subjective satisfaction refers to global quality of life as assessed by individuals.…”

“…The life domains of social well-being, physical well-being, psychological well-being, cognitive well-being, spiritual well-being, and environmental well-being as well as their indicators are common and consistently included to some extent in many of these existing measurement instruments. However, there are several limitations to the measurement of quality of life, including, (a) restricting measurement to one model (e.g., HRQoL) (Baker and Intagliata 1982;Baxter and Shetterly 1998;Bond 1999;Bury and Holme 1990;Cairl et al 1999, Capitman et al 1997Coons and Mace 1996;Farquhar 1994Farquhar , 1995Galambos 1997;Gamroth et al 1995;Livingston et al 1998;Marinelli and Plummer 1999;Noelker and Harel 2001;Osberg et al 1987;Raphael et al 1997), (b) limiting inquiries of quality of life ratings to a single source (e.g., perspective of a clinical provider) (Becker et al 1993Cairl et al 1999;Diaz and Mercier 1996;Diaz et al 1999;Kane 2001;Kane and Kane 2001;Rabiner et al 1997), and (c) evaluating quality of life among older people with disabilities/mental health issues such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease (Albert et al 1996(Albert et al , 1997Atchley 1991;Bond 1999;Raphael et al 1997). Baker and Intagliata (1982) identified additional problems with measuring quality of life that include insensitivity of quality of life measures, lack of data on normal fluctuations of mood states, limited norms of target populations, and the need for more consumer perspectives of quality of life.…”

“…McDowell & Newell 1987 Moberg 1990Schipper et al 1990Rabiner et al 1997 Indicators of social well-being generally include a sense of belonging and social environmental factors such as recreation and leisure/social activities, contact with statutory and voluntary organizations, community interactions, and family and social networks/relationships and support, including affection, positive interaction, socialization, psychosocial support, informational support, and emotional support/reassurance (Atchley 1991;Baxter and Shetterly 1998;Becker et al 1993;Bond 1999;Brink 1997;Capitman et al 1997;Frisch et al 1992;Glass 1991;Kane 1998Kane , 2001Keigher et al 2000;Lassey and Lassey 2001;Marinelli and Plummer 1999;Raphael et al 1997). The size and composition of social networks, the quantity of social contact, and the quality of support provided are variables influencing social well-being (Albert et al 1997;Baxter and Shetterly 1998;Becker et al 1993;Bury and Holme 1990;Kane 2001;Lassey and Lassey 2001;Marinelli and Plummer 1999). In regard to social relationships, Kane (2001) argued that relationships make life worth living, whether they are relationships of love, friendship, or even of enmity and rivalry.…”

“…This might include technical care (e.g., medication administration, bathing, and dressing), the extent to which the plan of care is effective (e.g., the satisfaction of stabilizing, maintaining, or improving a person's level of short-term and long-term functioning, health, and well-being), and the skill and appropriateness of medical and physical care, including receiving appropriate care in a timely manner and not receiving unnecessary care, physician involvement, and preventing or postponing nursing home placement (Albert et al 1997;Atchley 1991;Bury and Holme 1990;Glass 1991;Kane 1998).…”

Quality of Life in Older Adults: Benefits from Caring Services in Hong Kong

“…The home care service has proven to be effective in Western contexts (Wister, 1992;McNeil, 1995). Effective results would manifest in the older user's quality of life (Albert et al, 1997), notably reduction in distress (Riordan and Bennett, 1998). One key of its success tends to be the care recipient's freedom from exploitation, which stems from the nursing concern in the home care service (Kane and Kane, 1994).…”