Seniors health

Measures to Reduce Sedentary Behaviour and Encourage Physical Activity in Persons 65 And Older Living at Home During the COVID-19 Pandemic

To prevent deterioration in physical and mental health and cognitive function that could prejudice the autonomy and independence of persons 65 and older, it is important for them to adopt a physically active lifestyle.

To mitigate the impact of public health measures on physical activity, additional strategies are proposed for the public health network, its partners, and municipalities.

  • For the public health network and its partners:
  • Raise awareness of the importance of being active at home and promote regular physical activity to foster wellness and quality of life and help maintain independence (1–7) and good mental health (8) (e.g., targeted campaigns promoting physical activity, promotion of physical activities all year long).
  • Encourage the reduction of extended sedentary behaviours and of their total duration (e.g., active breaks, walking, housekeeping activities).
  • Support the regular…

COVID-19: Tackling Social Isolation and Loneliness Among Seniors in a Pandemic Context

This document was written in the health emergency context of COVID-19. As it was created within a short time frame and is based on knowledge obtained from a quick and non-exhaustive summary analysis of the available scientific and grey literature, the findings presented in this document may need to be reviewed as the scientific knowledge related to the current pandemic develops.

Seniors need social interaction and social support networks to have good health and feelings of well-being and satisfaction with life.

Isolation and loneliness are common among seniors and have detrimental consequences on their physical and mental health. A number of social isolation risk factors are exacerbated in a pandemic context.

A systemic approach in partnership with the public, private, and community sectors on provincial, regional, and local levels should be prioritized in the fight against social isolation and loneliness. This approach must invol…

Health services use and frailty among Québec seniors with a minor fracture

Principaux constats :

  • Among individuals aged 65 years and older having suffered a minor fracture, 13.6% were considered frail while 5.2% were robust.
  • This study shows that frail elderly seniors use health care more extensively after experiencing a minor fracture.
  • It is possible to characterize seniors’ frailty status at a population level using an adaptation of a frailty index in the healthcare administrative databases.

Cognitive Health, a New Target for Healthy Aging

Population aging is occurring particularly rapidly in Québec. Moreover, cognitive impairments increase with advancing age and become a more significant source of disability as seniors age. Cognitive impairments adversely affect the exercise of such mental functions as memory, judgment, attention, learning capacity and the ability to solve problems, and such impairment can have a significant impact on the ability to remain autonomous and on quality of life. The main types of cognitive impairment are: age-related cognitive decline, mild cognitive impairment and major neurocognitive Alzheimer’s-type dementia for which there is still no cure.

  • In Canada in 2015, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias were the second leading cause of mortality, responsible for 12% of deaths, the third leading cause of premature mortality and the fourth most significant health burden.
  • Cognitive impairments have significant economic and health impacts for informal caregiver…

Helping Front-Line Health and Social Services Professionals Detect Elder Abuse: Summary

Elder abuse is increasingly acknowledged to be a health and social problem that must be addressed. Unfortunately, few recent studies provide a measure of the scope of the problem in Canada. The only Canada-wide study reports that 4% of seniors are victims of elder abuse in any given year. However, the actual proportion is probably higher, considering that such abuse is often misunderstood and under-reported.

It is important that the clinical community play a role in combatting this serious problem. On account of their frequent contact with seniors, frontline health professionals are well-placed to detect cases of elder abuse. However, not all of them are adequately equipped to meet the challenge of recognizing the many different forms of this type of abuse.

This summary is intended in particular for managers and decision makers in the health and social services network. It suggests possible courses of action for promoting early detection of elder abuse by health and…

Expedited knowledge synthesis on factors affecting implementation of integrated services networks for the elderly: the experts' viewpoint

This document summarizes the main observations delivered by the experts on the implementation processes involved for RSIPAs, thus constituting a part of the expedited knowledge synthesis we realised on this subject. We grouped the comments under six themes: a general appreciation of the model (even if this aspects extended beyond the object of the synthesis), questions related to the general governing of the system (at the ministerial level), those concerning appropriation at the local level, special considerations implied by the function of case manager, incentives to consider and the various elements to take into account in monitoring implementation.

Falls Prevention Among Seniors Living at Home: Preliminary Recommendations for Clinical Practice Guidelines

Falls among seniors are a major public health problem. We estimate that approximately 30% of people aged 65 or over fall every year, with serious consequences at individual, family and social levels.

A number of effective interventions have been developed to prevent falls among the elderly, and physicians will be asked to include them in their practice. Therefore, it is essential to draw up and disseminate falls prevention practice guidelines that are based on recent scientific data and that reflect the conditions in which physicians practice in Québec.