Loneliness as a risk factor for care home admission in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Background loneliness has an adverse effect on health and well being, and is common at older ages. Evidence that it is a risk factor for care home admission is sparse. Objective to investigate the association between loneliness and care home admission. Setting English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) Participants two hundred fifty four individuals across seven waves (2002 15) of ELSA who moved into care homes were age, sex matched to four randomly selected individuals who remained in the community. Methods logistic regression models examined associations between loneliness, socio demographic factors, functional status and health on moving into care homes. Results loneliness (measured by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness Scale and a single item question from the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES D) was associated with moving into a care home (CES D OR 2.13, 95% CI 1.43 3.17, P 0.0002, UCLA OR 1.81, 95% CI 1.01 3.27, P 0.05) The association persisted after adjusting for established predictors (age, sex, social isolation, depression, memory problems including diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, disability, long term physical health and wealth) The impact of loneliness (measured by CES D) on admission accounted for a population attributable fraction of 19.9% (95% CI 7.8 30.4% Conclusions loneliness conveys an independent risk of care home admission that, unlike other risk factors, may be amenable to modification. Tackling loneliness amongst older adults may be a way of enhancing wellbeing and delaying or reducing the demand for institutional care.
Age and ageing