Unlocking Potential project Advisory Group Meeting

Research project The impact of formal volunteering on the health and well-being of older people in

Northern Ireland.

Presentation of Timepoint 1 findings

Dr. John Mallett & Prof. Maurice StringerUniversity of Ulster

Overview1. Overview of some of the health related scales

2. Description of baseline sampleLocal Government District

EUROSTAT NUTS (Level 3)Old Health & Social Care areasDemographics (Age, gender, income)

3. Organisational classification

4. Main activities carried out within organisations

5. Reported healthDiagnosed medical conditions.Satisfaction with health

Activity levels / disability

6. Correlates of well-being scales (age, gender, living circumstances, income etc..).

7. Summary

1. Overview of some of the health related scales

- (WHOQOL)-BREF- General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12).- Diagnosed medical conditions-Lubben Social Support Scale- Experiences and Attitudes to Ageing Questionnaire (EAAQ)

Table 1 QUALITY OF LIFE THE (WHOQOL) -BREF

Domain

1. Physical health

Activities of daily living Dependence on medicines and medical aids Energy & fatigue MobilityPain and discomfortSleep & restWork capacity

2. Psychological

Bodily image and appearanceNegative feelings Positive feelingsSelf-esteemThinking, learning, memory, concentrationSpirituality, religion, meaning in life

3. Environment

Financial resourcesFreedom, physical safety and securityHealth & Social care: accessibility & qualityHome environmentOpportunities for acquiring new information & skillsParticipation in and opportunities for recreation/ leisure activitiesHealthy Physical environmentTransport

4. Social Relationships *Personal relationships Social SupportSexual activity

The Lubben Social Network Scale

Can be used to assess the level of social support available to an individual

Measures: 10 questions

(1) family networks: 3 questions(2) friends networks: 3 questions(3) confidant relationships: 2 questions(4) helping others: 1 two part question(5) living arrangements: 1 question

This study used used parts 1 and 2 only

Reported medical conditions as diagnosed by a doctor or consultant

Individuals tick ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to each of the following

1.High blood pressure2.Diabetes or high blood sugar3.Cancer or malignant tumor4.Chronic lung disease5.Heart attack or other heart problems6.Stroke7.Arthritis or rheumatism

These are classified as significant medical problems based on Lumm & Lightfoot, 2005)

These questions can be examined individually and / or aggregated to form a total diagnosed physical health score.High scores indicate more health conditions.

EXPERIENCES AND ATTITUDES TO AGEING QUESTIONNAIRE (EAAQ)

Q15a-Q15g (1=Strongly Disagree, 5=Strongly agree) Q17a-Q17q (1=not at all true, 5=extremely true).

Psychological loss Scale

3. Old age is a time of loneliness. 6. Old age is a depressing time of life. 9. I find it more difficult to talk about my feelings as I get older. 12. I see old age mainly as a time of loss. 15. I am losing my physical independence as I get older. 17. As I get older, I find it more difficult to make new friends. 20. I don’t feel involved in society now that I am older. 22. I feel excluded from things because of my age.

EXPERIENCES AND ATTITUDES TO AGEING QUESTIONNAIRE (EAAQ)

Q15a-Q15g (1=Strongly Disagree, 5=Strongly agree) Q17a-Q17q (1=not at all true, 5=extremely true).

Physical Change Scale

7. It is important to take exercise at any age. 8. Growing older has been easier than I thought. 11. I don’t feel old. 13. My identity is not defined by my age. 14. I have more energy now than I expected for my age. 16.Problems with my physical health do not hold me back from doing what I want to. 23. My health is better than I expected for my age. 24. I keep myself as fit and active as possible by exercising.

EXPERIENCES AND ATTITUDES TO AGEING QUESTIONNAIRE (EAAQ)

Q15a-Q15g (1=Strongly Disagree, 5=Strongly agree) Q17a-Q17q (1=not at all true, 5=extremely true).

Psychological Gain1 As people get older they are better able to cope with life. 2. It is a privilege to grow old. 4. Wisdom comes with age.5. There are many pleasant things about growing older.10. I am more accepting of myself as I have grown older.18.It is very important to pass on the benefits of my experiences to younger people. 19. I believe my life has made a difference.21. I want to give a good example to younger people.

Table 2 Psychometric scale reliabilities

Psychometric Scale

Reliability coefficient Cronbach’s alpha

Number of items in scale

(WHOQOL)-BREFWell being/ Quality of life

Physical health .88 7

Psychological health

.79 6

Envirnonmental .82 8Goldberg et al., GHQ-12 .69 12Laidlaw’s Experiences and Attitudes to Ageing Questionnaire (EAAQ)

Psychological loss .77 8

Psychological gain .68 8Physical change .76 8

Lubben Social Support Scale

.85 6

2. Description of baseline sample

Local Government DistrictEUROSTAT NUTS (Level 3)Old Health & Social Care areasDemographics (Age, gender, income)

Fig 2.1 Survey response rate by Local Government District (LGN)

Fig. 2.2 Survey response rate by Local Government District (LGN)

Sample Response

%

Name Area

21.31.

BelfastBelfast

16.8

2. Outer Belfast

Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, North Down

14.8 3. East

Antrim, Ards, Ballymena, Banbridge, Craigavon, Down, Larne

21.3 4. North

Ballymoney, Coleraine, Derry, Limavady, Moyle, Strabane

16.8 5. West & South

Armagh, Cookstown, Dungannon, Fermanagh, Magherafelt, Newry and Mourne, Omagh

Eurostat Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) Level 3

21.3%

16.8%

16.8%

14.8%

Table 3

SampleResponse

%

Name Area

42.6% 1. Eastern

Ards, Belfast, Castlereagh, Down, Lisburn, North Down

17.9%2.

Northern

Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Cookstown, Larne, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newtownabbey

20.7%3.

Southern

Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon, Dungannon and South Tyrone, Newry and Mourne

9.8.% 4. Western

Derry, Fermanagh, Limavady, Omagh, Strabane

Health and Social Care areasThere were four health and social services boards which were replaced by a single Health and Social Care Board in April 2009. The former health and social services boards were as follows:

17.9%

9.8%

20.7%

42.6%

Table 4

Fig 2.3

Fig 2.4

- 281 respondents (78.9%) were located within Voluntary / Community organisations

- 12 respondents (3.4%) were based within faith-based church organisations

- 6 respondents (1.7%) were based within statutory organisations.

- 57 respondents (16%) did not provide information on the type of organisation.

3. Organisational classification

3. Main activities carried out within organisations

Main activities carried out by respondents in volunteering organisation

Fig. 3.1

Reasons given for becoming involved in volunteering

Fig 3.2

4. Reported health

-Diagnosed medical conditions.-Satisfaction with health- Activity levels

Fig 4.1

Fig 4.2

Fig 4.3

4. Reported health

-Diagnosed medical conditions-Satisfaction with health- Activity levels

Fig 4.4

Fig 4.5

Fig 4.6

4. Reported health

-Diagnosed medical conditions-Satisfaction with health - Activity levels

Fig 4.7

Fig 4.8

Fig 4.9

Fig 4.10

Fig 4.11

Reported health

-Diagnosed medical conditions-Satisfaction with health - Activity levels

Table 5. Pearson zero-order correlations between Main Health Scales and demographic variables.

Table 6. Pearson zero-order correlations between Main Health Scales and demographic variables.

Table 7. Number of experienced volunteers by local government area and age .AGE IN 10 YEAR BLOCKS Total

50-59 YEARS 60-69 YEARS 70-79 YEARS 80-90 YEARS1.00 ANTRIM 2 1 0 0 32.00 ARDS 1 2 0 1 43.00 ARMAGH 0 1 1 0 24.00 BALLYMENA 1 0 0 0 15.00 BALLYMONEY 2 2 0 1 56.00 BANBRIDGE 1 1 0 0 27.00 BELFAST 17 20 8 2 478.00 CARRICKFERGUS 0 1 0 0 110.00 COLERAINE 0 9 1 0 1011.00 COOKSTOWN 1 2 1 0 412.00 CRAIGAVON 0 4 1 0 513.00 DERRY 4 7 12 2 2514.00 DOWN 7 6 2 0 1515.00 DUNGANNON & SOUTH TYRONE

2 0 2 0 4

16.00 FERMANAGH 1 5 1 0 717.00 LARNE 0 2 1 0 318.00 LIMAVADY 1 1 0 0 219.00 LISBURN 2 9 1 0 1220.00 MAGHERAFELT 1 1 0 0 221.00 MOYLE 1 0 0 0 122.00 NEWRY & MOURNE 1 5 1 0 7

23.00 NEWTOWNABBEY 2 7 3 1 13

24.00 NORTH DOWN 1 14 3 2 2025.00 OMAGH 1 9 3 0 1326.00 STRABANE 0 3 0 0 3TOTALS 49 112 41 9 211

AGE IN 10 YEAR BLOCKS Totals50-59

YEARS60-69 YEARS 70-79 YEARS 80-90 YEARS

1.00 ANTRIM 0 1 0 0 12.00 ARDS 0 5 2 0 73.00 ARMAGH 2 0 0 0 25.00 BALLYMONEY 1 1 1 1 46.00 BANBRIDGE 0 2 0 0 27.00 BELFAST 6 16 4 0 268.00 CARRICKFERGUS 1 0 0 0 19.00 CASTLEREAGH 0 1 0 0 110.00 COLERAINE 4 5 1 0 1011.00 COOKSTOWN 0 1 0 0 112.00 CRAIGAVON 0 2 0 0 213.00 DERRY 1 7 3 0 1114.00 DOWN 3 5 0 0 815.00 DUNGANNON & SOUTH TYRONE

0 0 1 0 1

16.00 FERMANAGH 0 2 1 1 418.00 LIMAVADY 0 0 1 0 119.00 LISBURN 1 3 1 1 620.00 MAGHERAFELT 1 0 0 0 122.00 NEWRY & MOURNE

2 3 2 0 7

23.00 NEWTOWNABBEY 0 3 0 0 324.00 NORTH DOWN 1 2 0 0 325.00 OMAGH 1 2 0 0 326.00 STRABANE 0 2 0 0 2TOTALS 24 63 17 3 107

Table 8. Number of new volunteers by local government area and age.

Summary- The sample covers all local government districts in N. Ireland with expected higher representation from urban areas.

- There were proportionately more females (60%).

-The sample was well represented in terms of age spread with the majority of respondents aged between 60-69.

- The sample contained a good mix of new and existing volunteers-One quarter of the sample did not answer the question on income.

-Of those who answered the income question the income distribution was widely spread with a smaller but significant number of higher household incomes reported.

- This was mirrored by a diverse range of educational backgrounds.

Summary- HealthA largely healthy sample with some age related differencesin health and attitudes recorded.

Positive attitudes to health were expressed by the majority of respondents.

The most commonly reported medical conditions were high blood pressure (33%)and arthritis/ rheumatism (30%) with much lower numbers reporting other significant medical conditions (Heart 12%, Diabetes (8%), Stroke (2.8%), Cancer 2.5%, lung disease (3.4%).

Activity levels were high among the majority of volunteers

Psychological scales performed largely as expected in relation to demographic differences.

Questions?...