Negative Health Outcomes among the Elderly

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Abstract
The goals of this research were to identify predictors of negative health outcomes among the elderly and to specify subgroups or profiles of elderly with similar health outcomes one year after an initial health assessment. A secondary analysis of data, pooled from three studies concerned with the health and long term care of the elderly, was performed using a multivariate, statistical approach. Number of chronic conditions, age, social class, and income were important predictors of the two variables measuring health decline. Variables identified as predictors of mortality and/or paths to death include the following: IADL dependencies, degenerative diagnoses, living arrangements, MSQ, and social class. Profiles of the elderly, resulting from the AID analysis, coincided with research findings presented in the literature. This analysis technique holds promise with regard to targeting appropriate health and long-term care services to subgroups of elderly who could benefit most from them.