Functional health status and instrumental activities of daily living performance in noninstitutionalized elderly people.

The purpose of this descriptive correlational study was to examine the relationship between functional health status and the performance of instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) in a group of noninstitutionalized elderly people. A convenience sample of 47 subjects who were 70 years of age or older participated by completing three questionnaires: the Health Status Questionnaire, the Multidimensional Functional Assessment IADL Scale and a demographic questionnaire. Lawton's (1985) theoretical model of person-environment interaction provided the conceptual framework for the study. Three functional status variables reached statistical significance (0.001) with IADL performance: social functioning (r = -0.6045); health perception (r = -0.6984); and physical functioning (r = -0.6635) suggesting that these are important indicators of overall health status, and that a decline in each could contribute to increased IADL dependency. The IADLs of housekeeping, shopping, and transportation correlated significantly (0.001) with functional health status, implying that, as health declines in elderly people, they may require more assistance with IADLs, in order to remain more independent in the community. The results have implications for nursing administrators and nursing educators with regard to developing health promotion strategies related to independence of elderly people, community health and social policy.