Associations between biopsychosocial factors and transportation patterns of older adults residing in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Frontiers in Public Health

Public Health

Devinder Kaur Ajit Singh¹  Arimi Fitri Mat Ludin¹  Nurul Syuhada Mohd Rosnu¹  Wan Syafira Ishak¹  Suzana Shahar¹  Charles Musselwhite²  Tengku Aizan Hamid³  Mohd Harimi Abd Rahman⁴  Abdul Rais Abdul Latiff⁵ 

[1] Center for Healthy Ageing and Wellness (H-Care), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia;Centre for Ageing and Dementia Research, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, United Kingdom;Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia;Optometry and Vision Sciences Programme, Center for Rehabilitation and Special Needs, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia;School of Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Gelugor, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia;

关键词: aging;    biopsychosocial factors;    transportation patterns;    outdoor mobility;    older driver;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2023.1153822

 received in 2023-01-30, accepted in 2023-04-13,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

IntroductionAging is associated with physiological changes in multiple systems in the body and may impact the transportation choices of older adults. In this study, we examine the associations between biopsychosocial factors and the transportation choices of Malaysian older adults.MethodsOne hundred and nineteen (119) older adults, aged 60 and above, living in Klang Valley, Malaysia were recruited for this cross-sectional study. Participants were interviewed face-to-face to obtain sociodemographic data, health status (whether there were and, if yes, the number of comorbidities), outdoor mobility and transportation patterns, Instrumental Activity Daily Living (IADL) status and cognitive function. Participants’ physical performance (dominant handgrip strength, 10-m walk, and timed up and go tests), hearing threshold (pure tone audiometry), and vision function (visual acuity, contrast sensitivity) were measured. Transportation patterns of older adults were categorized into three groups, that is, flexible (using public transport and/or private vehicles), using only private vehicles and restricted (relying on others or walking).ResultsFurther information is needed to enable such older adults as older women, those with comorbidities and poorer functional status to access transportation, especially to meet their health care needs.DiscussionThe majority (51%) of participants were in the ‘using only private vehicles’ group, followed by the ‘flexibles’ (25%) and the ‘restricted’ (24%). Factors significantly associated with the restricted transportation group were: (a) being female (AdjOR 15.39, 95% CI 0.86–23.39, p < 0.001); (b) being Malay (AdjOR 21.72, 95% CI 0.36–16.12, p < 0.001); (c) having higher number of comorbidities (AdjOR 14.01, 95% CI 0.20–13.21, p = 0.007); and (d) being dependent in IADL (AdjOR 13.48, 95% CI 0.51–1.78, p = 0.002).

【 授权许可】

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Copyright © 2023 Mohd Rosnu, Ishak, Abd Rahman, Shahar, Musselwhite, Mat Ludin, Hamid, Abdul Latiff and Singh.