Abstract
Community mobility is important for social participation and quality of life. Thus, it is important to sustain older adults in their communities by supporting their ability to drive as long as possible. Use of global positioning system (GPS) technology may provide such support. This descriptive study examined 89 healthy community older adults’ perspective on using and programming a GPS after using it for wayfinding to unfamiliar destinations. Participants were equally divided between two age groups (60s, 70s) and familiarity with GPS (familiar, unfamiliar). The results showed age differences in problems following GPS directions and those who were familiar found it significantly easier to use. The majority of the unfamiliar group indicated an increased interest in using GPS and were significantly more interested in training to use a GPS. Preference for learning how to use a GPS included in-person delivery and practice with troubleshooting, using the menus and changing routes as topics critical for training. The implications of these results are discussed.
Highlights
Driving is and will continue to be the preferred method of community mobility for older adults.This is especially true for the majority of older adults who live in suburban and rural communities [1].In addition, community mobility is critical for maintaining physical and mental health and quality of life [2] and essential as a means to engage in activities outside the home in order to enhance and support social participation [3]
Community mobility is critical for maintaining physical and mental health and quality of life [2] and essential as a means to engage in activities outside the home in order to enhance and support social participation [3]
Older adults without the ability to drive and who have limited social contacts are at far greater risk of not getting their basic needs met without public awareness and assistance
Summary
Driving is and will continue to be the preferred method of community mobility for older adults.This is especially true for the majority of older adults who live in suburban and rural communities [1].In addition, community mobility is critical for maintaining physical and mental health and quality of life [2] and essential as a means to engage in activities outside the home in order to enhance and support social participation [3]. Driving is and will continue to be the preferred method of community mobility for older adults. To support our older adult’s wellbeing, professionals in both healthcare and transportation must work together to provide transportation mobility throughout the life span [4], especially for those most vulnerable, when driving is no longer possible and public methods of transportation are limited or not available. Transportation equity [4] will become more of a public health issue as the US population ages with those over the age of 80 becoming the fastest growing age group. This issue has been highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The social isolation of older adults in the context of COVID-19 has been identified as one of the most affected health outcomes [5]
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