In the proposed study the physical health - mental health interface will be investigated focusing on elderly heart patients and their caretakers. More than one-fourth the activity limitation of persons 65 and over is related to heart problems and mental health consequences such as depression are frequent correlates of myocardial infarction (MI). Furthermore, the ailing aged require assistance and care and major caregivers are often elderly. The study seeks to provide better understanding of predictors of recovery among older persons. We contend that the aged will show better long and short term outcomes when certain mediating factors are present. As they have adequate personal and social resources, positive illness adaptational outcomes will ensue and both physical and mental health will be enhanced. The inputs of a caregiver and costs to this latter individual especially if he or she is also aged, will provide an integral aspect of this investigation. We plan to conduct a one year longitudinal study (consisting of two waves) of 200 patients and their prime caregivers. Elderly persons and their major caregivers will be individually interviewed 6 weeks following discharge from hospitalization for a first heart attack and again one year later. Data will be collected on their personal and social resources including general coping style, illness specific coping efforts, social support, and medical-economic variables. Adaptational outcomes will be determined according to achievement of illness adaptation tasks in conjunction with theories of crisis response. Analyses will provide descriptive data about heart disease adjustment and caretaking. Predictive materials will also be generated and we will present path models to show any causal flow of resources to positive adaptational outcomes toward mental and physical health. We also will evaluate any change in basic elements of the model over the two data collection periods.
| Young, R F; Kahana, E (1995) The context of caregiving and well-being outcomes among African and Caucasian Americans. Gerontologist 35:225-32 |
| Young, R F; Kahana, E (1993) Gender, recovery from late life heart attack, and medical care. Women Health 20:11-31 |
| Young, R F; Waller Jr, J B; Kahana, E (1991) Racial and socioeconomic aspects of myocardial infarction recovery: studying confounds. Am J Prev Med 7:438-44 |
| Young, R F; Kahana, E (1989) Specifying caregiver outcomes: gender and relationship aspects of caregiving strain. Gerontologist 29:660-6 |
