Walker Emily, McNamara Beverley
School of Occupational Therapy and Social Work, Centre for Research into Disability and Society, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
Aust Occup Ther J. 2013 Dec;60(6):445-53. doi: 10.1111/1440-1630.12038. Epub 2013 Jun 18.
BACKGROUND/AIM: Older adults are increasingly relocating to alternative housing options, such as retirement villages. Relocations can be stressful and these environmental transitions can cause significant disruption to the person-environment and occupational fit, thus influencing health, well-being and quality of life. There is a lack of literature from an occupational therapy perspective in relation to healthy older adults seeking to relocate. This study aimed to identify issues healthy older adults face when relocating to retirement living, what strategies they used during this process, how they maintained a sense of home, and the potential for occupational therapy involvement.
Sixteen semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with participants recruited from retirement living facilities across three stages of relocation; 'Decision', 'Early Days', and 'Established'. A grounded theory approach was used to code and analyse the data.
Having control over the decisions surrounding relocation, being proactive rather than reactive and preparing sufficiently for the move all contributed to a positive post-location adjustment. Four main themes emerged from the narratives: timing of decision making, new beginnings, continuity, and strategies for change.
This study contributes to literature surrounding how older adults occupy and make meaning of the spaces they call home and also enriches literature regarding environmental transitions. Relocation can be a disruptive process and occupational therapists are uniquely placed to facilitate healthy ageing throughout this transition using preventative and community-based occupational therapy.
背景/目的：老年人越来越多地选择搬到诸如退休村等其他居住场所。搬迁可能会带来压力，这些环境转变会对人与环境及职业适配性造成重大干扰，进而影响健康、幸福感和生活质量。从职业治疗的角度来看，针对寻求搬迁的健康老年人的文献较为匮乏。本研究旨在确定健康老年人在搬入退休生活社区时面临的问题、他们在此过程中采用的策略、他们如何保持家的感觉，以及职业治疗介入的可能性。
对从退休生活设施中招募的参与者进行了16次半结构化深度访谈，访谈分搬迁的三个阶段进行；“决策阶段”、“初期阶段”和“稳定阶段”。采用扎根理论方法对数据进行编码和分析。
对与搬迁相关的决策有控制权、积极主动而非被动应对以及为搬迁做好充分准备，所有这些都有助于在搬迁后进行积极的调整。从叙述中出现了四个主要主题：决策时机、新的开始、连续性和变革策略。
本研究为有关老年人如何占据他们称之为家的空间并赋予其意义的文献做出了贡献，同时也丰富了有关环境转变的文献。搬迁可能是一个破坏性的过程，职业治疗师在整个过渡过程中处于独特的地位，能够通过预防性和基于社区的职业治疗来促进健康老龄化。
