241785 Black-White differenece in disability among older adults

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Shih-Fan Lin, DrPH , Center for Health Equity Research and Policy, San Diego State University Research Foundation, San Diego, CA
Brian Finch, PhD , Center for Health Equity Research and Policy, San Diego State University Research Foundation, San Diego, CA
Audrey Beck, PhD , Center for Health Equity Research and Policy, San Diego State University Research Foundation, San Diego, CA
Robert A. Hummer, PhD , Population Research Center & Department of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
Ryan Masters, PhD , Population Research Center & Department of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
Chronic disability contributes to limited independence and poor quality of life among older adults. Generally, Blacks experience disability more frequently than Whites. Although the rate of disability has declined in recent decades, contradictory evidence suggests that newer cohorts report more disabilities than their earlier counterparts. Thus, the primary goal of our study is to better understand how Black-White disparities in disability changed across time and over the life-course among older adults (aged 65+). To date, no other studies have focused on age, period, and cohort simultaneously to examine temporal change and explore the correlates of Black-White disparity in disability. We seek to accomplish this goal by analyzing the Integrated Health Interview Survey (IHIS), which contains multiple cross-sectional waves of individual-level measures such as age, interview year (period), birth year (cohort), limitations of ADL and IADL, bed disability days, and a broad set of demographic control variables. Our preliminary results show that the odds of having ADL and IADL limitations and bed disability days are higher in older Blacks than their White counterparts. Age also positively correlates with ADL and IADL limitations and bed disability days. After accounting for both age and period, ADL limitations do not significantly vary by cohort; however, more recent cohorts are less likely to have an IADL limitation and bed disability days. Further analyses will investigate the trend of Black-White disparity across the cohorts and periods.

Learning Areas:
Epidemiology
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Learners will be able to describe the Black-White disparity in disability by age, period, and cohort. More specifically, learners will be able to: (a) Distinguish whether Black-White disparity in ADL limitation, IADL limitation, and bed disability days change across periods and for which periods the disparities are the most pronounced. (b) Demonstrate whether Black-White disparity in ADL limitation, IADL limitation, and bed disability days change across cohorts and for which cohorts the disparities are the most pronounced. (c) Distinguish whether cohort or period is the more important contributor to Black-White disparity in various disability outcomes including ADL limitations, IADL limitations, and bed disability days.

Keywords: Aging, Disability

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am in charge of the data analyses and article writing of our study "Black-White Difference in Disability among Older Adults."
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.