Driving Status and Risk of Entry Into Long-Term Care in Older Adults
Ellen E. Freeman 1*,Stephen J. Gange 2,Beatriz Muñoz 1,Sheila K. West 1
1 Johns Hopkins School of Medicine 2 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: eefreeman{at}gmail.com.
Abstract
Objectives. Given the importance of driving in American society,older nondrivers may be unable to meet basic needs while livingindependently. We assessed whether not driving is an independentrisk factor for entering long-term care (LTC) institutions.
Methods.Data were used from 1593 older adults who participated in theSalisbury Eye Evaluation cohort study and completed an additionaltelephone survey. Questions on driving status and LTC entrywere obtained by self/proxy report. Cox time-dependent regressionprocedures were used to adjust for demographic and health factors.
Results.Former and never drivers had higher hazards of LTC entry afteradjustment for demographic and health variables (hazard ratio[HR]=4.85; 95% confidence interval [CI]=3.26, 7.21; and HR=3.53;95% CI=1.89, 6.58, respectively). Also, having no other driversin the house was an independent risk factor for LTC entry (HR=1.72;95% CI=1.15, 2.57).
Discussion. Older adults are expected tomake good decisions about when to stop driving, but the hardshipsimposed on older adults by not driving are not widely recognized.Innovative strategies to improve transportation options forolder adults should be considered.
Key Words:
Aging, Epidemiology, Health Care Facilities/Services, Health Policy
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