Self-assessed impact of oral health on the psychological well-being and depressive symptoms of older adults living in Melbourne.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate oral health-related factors affecting the self-assessed psychological well-being (PW) and depressive symptoms of independent-living Australians aged 79 years and over living in the community in metropolitan Melbourne.

Methods: The Melbourne Longitudinal Studies on Healthy Aging (MELSHA) program was used as the data source in this study and includes data on the health and well-being of older participants. The MELSHA baseline data collection occurred in 1994, the current study used data from the 2008 data collection and included 201 participants, who remained in the study.

Perceived availability of future care and depressive symptoms among older adults in China: evidence from CHARLS.

Background: Major concerns have arisen about the challenges facing China in providing sufficient care to its older population in light of rapid population ageing, changing family structure, and considerable rates of internal migration. At the family level, these societal changes may produce care uncertainty which may adversely influence the psychological wellbeing of older individuals. This paper applies social support and control theories to examine the relationship between perceived availability of future care and psychological wellbeing of older adults in China, and how this relationship is moderated by economic insufficiency, health vulnerability, and urban/rural context.

Patterns of home and community care use among older participants in the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health.

The aims of this study were to investigate patterns of home and community care (HACC) use and to identify factors influencing first HACC use among older Australian women. Our analysis included 11,133 participants from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health (1921-1926 birth cohort) linked with HACC use and mortality data from 2001 to 2011. Patterns of HACC use were analysed using a k-median cluster approach.

Factors associated with length of stay in hospital for men and women aged 85 and over: A quantile regression approach.

Objectives: Explore characteristics of hospital use for adults aged 85 and over in their last year of life and examine factors associated with cumulative overnight length of stay (LOS).

Data Source/study Setting: NSW 45 and Up Study linked with hospital data.

Study Design: Longitudinal cohort study.

Heterogeneity in the Health and Functional Capacity of Adults Aged 85+ as Risk for Mortality.

Objectives: To examine whether older adults aged 85+, with different health and functional capacities, cluster in different ways and to demonstrate whether individuals within particular clusters report differential mortality risk.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: The Dynamic Analyses to Optimize Aging (DYNOPTA) project is a harmonization project of nine Australian longitudinal surveys of health and well-being in adults aged 50+ between 1991 and 2006.

Geographical variations in self-rated health and functional limitations among older Chinese in eight WHO-SAGE provinces.

Background: The proportion of population ageing in China will grow significantly in the next few decades but the pace of population ageing and social change vary considerably across regions. Notably, Eastern coastal areas are economically more advanced compared to the Western region. These economic disparities could result in differing adverse health outcomes.

'Millennials': Perceived generational opportunities and intergenerational conflict in Australia.

Objective: To investigate the perceptions of intergenerational conflict and lifelong opportunities of the Millennial cohort.

Methods: Data were collected in the Attitudes to Ageing in Australia Study as part of the 2015-2017 national Australian Survey of Social Attitudes (n = 2049, aged 18 and older). Variations by age cohorts and individual characteristics were examined in descriptive analyses and binary logistic regressions.

Life course influences on later life health in China: Childhood health exposure and socioeconomic mediators during adulthood.

China's unprecedented population aging and social and economic change raise important issues concerning life course determinants of advantage or disadvantage into later life. Data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2013 were analysed to identify the influence of childhood health on later life health as indicated by self-rated health and how this influence could be mediated by social and economic positions (SEP) and resources later in the life span. CHARLS provides nationally representative data on 18, 000 individuals aged 45 years and above in approximately 150 districts and 450 villages.

Impacts of voluntary and involuntary workforce transitions at mature ages: Longitudinal evidence from HILDA.

Objective: To assess the changes in health, well-being and welfare dependency associated with yearly workforce transitions from working to not working among people aged 45-64 years.

Methods: Transition analysis of the nationally representative longitudinal data from the Household Incomes and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey 2002-2011.

Results: People who voluntarily left paid work had reasonable control over their situations, and their satisfaction remained relatively stable even with deteriorating health and increasing welfare dependency.

Social capital dynamics and health in mid to later life: findings from Australia.

Purpose: The influence of social capital has been shown to improve health and wellbeing. This study investigates the relationship between changes in social capital and health outcomes during a 6-year follow-up in mid to later life in Australia.

Methods: Nationally representative data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey included participants aged 45 years and over who responded in 2006, 2010 and 2012 (N = 3606).

Reorienting Health Services to People with Chronic Health Conditions: Diabetes and Stroke Services in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

This paper explores whether middle-income Asian countries are reorienting their health services in response to non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand were selected as case studies of Asian societies experiencing rapid increases both in NCDs and an aging population. While NCD programs, especially those related to diabetes and stroke, are well-established in Thailand, health services struggle to respond to increasing numbers of people with chronic health problems.

Carer Characteristics and Health, Wellbeing and Employment Outcomes of Older Australian Baby Boomers.

Supporting caregivers and enabling continued workforce participation are central strategies in Australia's response to an ageing population, however these strategies have potential disadvantages for carers, particularly women, including reduced workforce participation and retirement income, and poorer health status. This paper explores the nexus between paid work and caregiving for Australia's baby boomer cohort as this group faces unprecedented pressures to manage paid work alongside caring longer and more intensively for family members, including grandchildren. A sample of 1261 men and women aged 60 to 64 completed the 2011-12 Life Histories and Health survey, a sub-study of the New South Wales 45 and Up Study.

Health status, health behaviours and anxiety symptoms of older male caregivers: Findings from the Concord Health and Ageing in Men Project.

Objective: To explore differences between older male caregivers and non-caregivers on health status, health behaviours and well-being, including symptoms of anxiety.

Methods: Data were collected through self-completed questionnaires and face-to-face interviews with 1705 community living men aged ≥70 in the Concord Health and Ageing in Men Project.

Results: Eleven per cent of older men were caregivers, of whom 81.

Living well with chronic disease for those older adults living in the community.

Background: Definitions of successful aging that incorporate dimensions of physical capacity and medical conditions are limited owing to the normative nature of experiencing medical conditions with age. We examine the capacity for older adults living in the community to live well with or without chronic disease as they age.

Method: Participants (n = 1,001) were from the Melbourne Longitudinal Studies on Healthy Ageing (MELSHA) study who were aged 65+ years at baseline, were living in the community and followed for 16 years.

Caregiving and mental health among workers: Longitudinal evidence from a large cohort of adults in Thailand.

Background: As people in middle and lower income countries live longer, more people become sick, disabled, and frail and the demand for family caregiving grows. Thailand faces such challenges. This study investigates the relationship between caregiving and mental health among workers drawn from a large longitudinal cohort of Thai adults.

End of life hospitalisations differ for older Australian women according to death trajectory: a longitudinal data linkage study.

Background: Hospitalisations are the prime contributor to healthcare expenditure, with older adults often identified as high hospital users. Despite the apparent high use of hospitals at the end of life, limited evidence currently exists regarding reasons for hospitalisation. Understanding complex end of life care needs is required for future health care planning as the global population ages.

Patterns of Hospitalization Risk for Women Surviving Into Very Old Age: Findings From the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health.

Background: By 2050, adults aged 80 years and over will represent around 20% of the global population. Little is known about how adults surviving into very old age use hospital services over time.

Objective: The objective of the study was to examine patterns of hospital usage over a 10-year period for women who were aged 84 to 89 in 2010 and examine factors associated with increased use.

Pathways to Well-Being in Later Life: Socioeconomic and Health Determinants Across the Life Course of Australian Baby Boomers.

In many countries like Australia and the United States, baby boomers are referred to as the 'lucky cohort', yet there has been little research on the origins and extent of inequalities within this cohort. This study uses path analysis to investigate direct and indirect effects of childhood and adult socioeconomic status and health on two subjective well-being measures: quality of life and life satisfaction. Retrospective life course data were obtained for 1,261 people aged 60 to 64 in the 2011-12 Life Histories and Health survey, a sub-study of the Australian 45 and Up Study.

Exploring Workforce Participation Patterns and Chronic Diseases Among Middle-Aged Australian Men and Women Over the Life Course.

Objective: This study identified associations between chronic diseases (diabetes, asthma, depression, and arthritis) and workforce participation patterns with a gendered perspective.

Method: We used data from 1,261 middle-aged participants of the Australian Life Histories and Health (LHH) Survey, aged 60 to 64 years in 2011. Latent class analysis identified dominant workforce patterns and associations between chronic diseases and these patterns were explored by multinomial regression models.