Gu Danan, Dupre Matthew E, Liu Guangya
Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University, 200 Trent Dr., Busse Bldg, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
Soc Sci Med. 2007 Feb;64(4):871-83. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2006.10.026. Epub 2006 Nov 28.
Existing research on the institutionalized population of older adults is primarily limited to Western countries. This study is the first to use nationally representative data to examine differences in the institutionalized and community-residing population of the oldest-old (ages 80+) in China. Using three waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) (1998, 2000, and 2002), we examine differences in sociodemographic characteristics, family caregiving resources, health practices, religious activity, chronic conditions, and mortality risk. The results indicate that the institutionalized oldest-old are younger, male, reside in urban areas, have lower family-care resources, and exhibit poorer health compared to those living in the community. We also find that the 2-year mortality risk for institutionalized elders is 1.35 times greater than for those residing in the community. However, the mortality differential is eliminated once the sociodemographic, family caregiving, and health characteristics of the oldest-old are taken into account. The implications of these findings are discussed.
现有关于老年人机构化人口的研究主要局限于西方国家。本研究首次使用具有全国代表性的数据，来考察中国高龄老人（80岁及以上）中机构化人口与社区居住人口之间的差异。利用中国健康与养老追踪调查（CLHLS）的三轮数据（1998年、2000年和2002年），我们考察了社会人口学特征、家庭照料资源、健康行为、宗教活动、慢性病状况和死亡风险方面的差异。结果表明，与社区居住的高龄老人相比，机构化的高龄老人更年轻、男性居多、居住在城市地区、家庭照料资源较少且健康状况较差。我们还发现，机构化老年人的两年死亡风险比社区居住的老年人高1.35倍。然而，一旦考虑到高龄老人的社会人口学特征、家庭照料情况和健康特征，死亡差异就会消除。本文讨论了这些发现的意义。
