Cumulative incidence of admission to permanent residential aged care for Australian women - A competing risk analysis

• Main Authors: Peta Forder (Author), Julie Byles (Author), Kha Vo (Author), Cassie Curryer (Author), Deborah Loxton (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Elsevier, 2018-04-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 1753-6405; 1326-0200; 10.1111/1753-6405.12713
• Keywords: older women; residential aged care; housing; competing risk analysis; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270
• Source: Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, Vol 42, Iss 2, Pp 166-171 (2018)

Abstract Objective: To provide a direct estimate of the risk of admission to permanent residential aged care among older women while accounting for death, according to housing type and other variables. Methods: A competing risk analysis from 8,867 Australian women born 1921-26, using linked data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH), Residential Aged Care (RAC), and the Australian National Death Index. Results: After accounting for deaths, around 35% of women will be admitted to RAC between ages 73 and 90. The conditional cumulative incidence of admission to RAC was 26.9% if living in a house, compared to 36.0% from an apartment, 43.6% within a retirement village, and 37.1% if living in a mobile home. Each one‐year increase in age was associated with a relative 17% increased risk of RAC. Conclusions: Around one‐third of women will enter RAC between age 73 and 90. Living in a house had the lowest risk of entering residential aged care over time. Implications for public health: These findings have important implications for planning for aged care services, including the role of housing in delaying admission to residential aged care, and the need for residential care by a high proportion of women towards the end of life.