What makes communication hard for older adults in aged care?

How

• health problems
• challenges to body functions
• the environment around a person

can impact communication in aged care settings.

A scoping review.

• A scoping review searches for all the research on a topic.
• It shows what we know and what we don't know.
• It finds gaps where more research is needed.

Researchers found combinations of 

• health problems (e.g. dementia)
• challenges to body functions (e.g. hearing problems)
• personal factors (e.g. culture or gender)
• the environment around a person (e.g. health services)

were reported to come together and impact communication for older adults in aged care settings.

• Older adults often experience changes to their communication.
• Communication changes can happen because of ageing, or other health problems that can impact reading, writing, talking and understanding others.
• There is research that explains how health problems, personal factors, or the environment around a person impact communication.
• But there isn't any information about how these factors come together to impact communication in aged care settings.

• The research found many factors come together to impact communication of older adults in aged care settings.
• These findings will be used to develop new resources.
• The new resources will include a tool to identify communication needs for older adults in aged care settings.
• The new resources will support the communication needs of older adults in aged care settings.

A scoping review.

• A scoping review searches for all the research on a topic.
• It shows what we know and what we don't know.
• It finds gaps where more research is needed.

n/a

• Communication changes with age.
• Changes to communication may be because of ageing, personal factors, or the environment around a person.
• Good communication in aged care is important for:
• making decisions
• relationships with other people
• setting goals, and
• living well.
• Because of these factors, it is important to understand how the factors that impact communication come together for older adults in aged care settings.

There were no risks related to the research.

• This research looks at all the current research on a topic. 
• This research did not involve people.

This research looks at all the current research on a topic. 

To be included, research had to:

• Report data from studies that watched and described communication of older adults in aged care settings.
• Investigate communication between older adults and communication partners in aged care settings.
• Describe the health conditions or factors that impacted communication of older adults.
• Report in English.

1. To find out which health problems, personal factors, or the environment around a person impact communication folder older adults in aged care settings.
2. To find out which personal or environmental factors help communication or make it harder for older adults in aged care settings.

The review included studies from 2003 to 2023.

• This research was done by reviewing existing studies online.

• A Medical Research Future Fund grant awarded to Associate Professor Sarah J Wallace (2015728).

• The researchers only reviewed research reported in English.
• Most of the studies were done in residential aged care settings.
• This means there may be information in other languages or about community aged care settings that the researchers could not review.

Yes. This research followed two research processes:

• The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews and
• Registration on the Open Science Framework.

• The research found that supporting communication needs of older adults in aged care settings is complicated, because everyone needs different support.
• These findings can help develop communication support strategies.
• These findings also show that new resources are needed to support the communication needs of older adults in aged care settings.

More information about the research included in the review can be found here: Factors influencing Communication for Older Adults in Residential and Community Aged Care: A Scoping Review | The Gerontologist | Oxford Academic