Care partner dyad strategies to support participation in community mobility

ABSTRACT

Background Factors supporting continued community mobility for older adults warrant attention due to the relationship between mobility, health, and social participation. Although community mobility is typically considered from the perspective of individual functional abilities, care partnerships represent a situation in which maintaining community mobility has implications for the well-being of all members. Aim The aim of this research was to explore and describe strategies used by older adult care partner dyads to support and maintain participation in community mobility. Methods Ethnographic case studies of three care partner dyads were conducted using in-depth interviews, participant observation, photographs, and reciprocal data analysis. An inductive, constant comparative data analysis resulted in thematic descriptions of strategies employed by the care partner dyads. Results Three strategies were identified in collaboration with care partners: (i) Acting in accordance with the values of the relationship, (ii) Finding and using available assistive technology and (iii) Relying on social networks. Conclusion and significance Strategies identified by participants were more relational than procedural in nature, indicating the need for occupational therapists working with care partner dyads to consider historical routines, social connectedness, and needs of the care partnership in addition to functional abilities of the care recipient when addressing community mobility.

KEYWORDS:

• Caregiver
• case study community participation
• ethnography
• occupational therapy
• older adult

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the participants for their generous gifts of time, and the Orange County, North Carolina Department on Aging for assistance with participant recruitment.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.