Future living arrangements of Singaporeans with age-related dementia.

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Date

2012-10

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Repository Usage Stats

104
views
47
downloads

Citation Stats

Attention Stats

Abstract

Background

With rapid aging, Singapore faces an increasing proportion of the population with age-related dementia. We used system dynamics methodology to estimate the number and proportion of people with mild, moderate, and severe dementia in future years and to examine the impact of changing family composition on their likely living arrangements.

Methods

A system dynamics model was constructed to estimate resident population, drawing birth and mortality rates from census data. We simulate future mild, moderate, and severe dementia prevalence matched with estimates of total dementia prevalence for the Asian region that includes Singapore. Then, integrating a submodel in which family size trends were projected based on fertility rates with tendencies for dependent elderly adults with dementia to live with family members, we estimate likely living arrangements of the future population of individuals with dementia.

Results

Though lower than other previous estimates, our simulation results indicate an increase in the number and proportion of people in Singapore with severe dementia. This and the concurrent decrease in family size point to an increasing number of individuals with dementia unlikely to live at home.

Conclusions

The momenta of demographic and illness trends portend a higher number of individuals with dementia less likely to be cared for at home by family members. Traditions of care for frail elderly found in the diverse cultures of Singapore will be increasingly difficult to sustain, and care options that accommodate these demographic shifts are urgently needed.

Department

Description

Provenance

Citation

Published Version (Please cite this version)

10.1017/s1041610212000282

Publication Info

Thompson, James P, Crystal M Riley, Robert L Eberlein and David B Matchar (2012). Future living arrangements of Singaporeans with age-related dementia. International psychogeriatrics, 24(10). pp. 1592–1599. 10.1017/s1041610212000282 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/22896.

This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.


Unless otherwise indicated, scholarly articles published by Duke faculty members are made available here with a CC-BY-NC (Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial) license, as enabled by the Duke Open Access Policy. If you wish to use the materials in ways not already permitted under CC-BY-NC, please consult the copyright owner. Other materials are made available here through the author’s grant of a non-exclusive license to make their work openly accessible.