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Our first task as a group was to design an overall plan for the Regina project. The research methodology that is being used in our project, the geographic scope of the project, the anticipated project outcomes, and the timelines are described below.
Qualitative research methods are being used to collect data for the project. In contrast to quantitative research methods that focus on collecting numbers and statistics, qualitative methods focus on understanding a situation from the perspective or frame of reference of the individuals who are involved in the situation. This is different from quantitative research, which is based on the assumption that there is a single, objective reality that is independent of the participants in a situation.
In qualitative research, the researcher is the data-gathering instrument. She talks to people and/or observes them in their natural situation. This is in contrast to quantitative research where paper-and-pencil tests and mechanical instruments are used as research tools.
The design of the study emerges as the study progresses. In qualitative research, the researcher starts with an outline of a research plan and develops the design as the study progresses. This approach permits adapting the plan for the study to include variables that were not anticipated before the study began. This is in contrast to quantitative research where all aspects of the study are planned in detail before the study begins.
The researcher analyzes the data inductively. A qualitative researcher first gathers the data and then tries to develop understandings and draw conclusions. This is in contrast to quantitative research where the researcher begins with a hypothesis and then sets out to prove or disprove the hypothesis.
Three data collection activities are being undertaken: interviews with seniors; interviews with people providing services to seniors; and, a literature review. Each of these activities is described in more detail in the sections that follow.
The experts on the factors that influence seniors' quality of life are, of course, seniors themselves. Seniors know better than anyone else what keeps them well and happy and what actions need to be taken to promote high quality of life among people 55 and over.
Accordingly, the main data collection activity for the Regina project is interviews with seniors. Seniors, like all other age groups within the general population, are not a homogeneous group. Therefore, the seniors who are being interviewed are diverse. The project coordinator and research assistant are trying to interview seniors:
of both genders; of various income levels; of all ages, from "young" seniors in their late 50s to "older" seniors of 90+; living on farms, in small towns and in cities; in a variety of personal situations, for example, single, widowed, married; those who are caregivers; those who are receiving care; those who have responsibility for grandchildren, etc.; and, in a variety of residential situations, for example, those who live in detached homes, in regular apartments, in apartments in seniors' complexes, in assisted living situations, in nursing homes, etc.
Most interviews are being done one-on-one. A few group interviews with two to four participants are also being done depending upon the situation. Interview participants are asked five questions:
Senior interview participants are being provided with an honorarium of $25.00 to acknowledge the value of their expertise and time. This is in keeping with past practice at the Seniors' Education Centre, which usually acknowledges the contribution of interview participants with an honorarium.
The budget provides for up to 40 interviews with seniors. However, the precise number of interviews done will depend on the circumstances of those interviews. For example, it will be possible to reach more interview participants if a few small group interviews are done in addition to one-on-one interviews.
We decided to use individual and/or small group interviews rather than focus groups, because:
People will speak more freely and more personally about the issues that concern them in a one-on-one interview than they would in a focus group. It is possible to reach a broader range of people through interviews than through focus groups. For example, people in nursing homes or personal care homes, people with physical disabilities or age-related frailty, and "young" seniors, 55-65, who are still working would likely not be able to participate in focus groups, but can be reached through interviews.
We decided to define our target group as people 55 and over, because this is the definition of a senior used by the Seniors' Education Centre, University of Regina.
Interview participants are being identified primarily through three means: The members of the Project Coordinating Committee have been invited to assist in identifying potential interview participants and to act as a liaison in setting interviews. Personal and professional acquaintances of the project coordinator and research assistant are being asked if they wish to participate in interviews. The two project staff live in different communities and have different social circles and professional contacts. Thus, considerable variety will result. Interview participants are asked if they know of any other people in their community who might be interested in participating in interviews.
Six to 12 individuals who provide services to seniors will be interviewed. Service providers interviewed might include health care workers, administrators of seniors' day centres or residential complexes, administrators of seniors' organizations such as the Seniors' Education Centre, volunteers with organizations such as Meals on Wheels, etc.
A literature review on factors that influence seniors' physical and psychological health is being done. Sources that are being searched included books and journals on gerontology and health, publications from seniors' organizations and appropriate websites on the Internet.
The focus of this project is on seniors in Regina and surrounding rural areas. It is important that the quality of life of seniors in rural Saskatchewan be addressed because:
Approximately half of Saskatchewan's population lives outside the province's 11 major urban centres.
In small communities, a higher percentage of citizens are seniors than in Regina. For example, in Beechy, Saskatchewan, a village of 281 people, the average age is 48.2 years and 37 percent of the population is over 65 years old.
Changing economics and increasing centralization mean that health, business and recreational services are increasingly located in large centres. This means that rural people of all ages have further to go to get the services they need. This is of particular concern to seniors who may no longer be able to drive, or who may face moving from their community of a lifetime in order to access services.
Accordingly, the seniors interviewed will come from small towns and farms in a 100- kilometre radius of Regina as well as from Regina itself.
Two products will be produced at the conclusion of the project:
The project is under the overall supervision and management of Dr. Don King, Director of the Seniors' Education Centre, University of Regina.
In late May 1999, two experienced researchers were contracted to do the research and writing associated with the project.
Project Coordinator: Loraine Thompson (of Loraine Thompson Information Services)
Phone and fax: (306) 757-2306
E-mail: ltisl@sk.sympatico.ca
Research Assistant: Jayne Melville Whyte
Phone and fax: (306) 332-5702
E-mail: jcmwhyte@sk.sympatico.ca
Both Loraine and Jayne are over 50 and thus are more likely to have greater credibility with people 55 and over, and perhaps greater understanding of and empathy for seniors' situations.
The project will be completed in January 2000. A list of project activities, along with tentative completion dates, appears below.
May 10, 1999 Project Coordinating Committee is appointed. Loraine and Jayne are contracted. Loraine writes project proposal.
May 31, 1999 Coordinating Committee reviews project proposal.
June 14, 1999 Loraine prepares package to go to University of Regina's Research Ethics Board package includes U of R's Ethics Approval form and a detailed description for the project.
June 28, 1999 Coordinating Committee reviews package for Ethics Board. Jayne reviews package for Ethics Board. Loraine revises the evaluation plan and package for Ethics Board. Ethics package goes to University of Regina Research Ethics Board.
June 28, 1999 Approval is received from University of Regina Research Ethics Board. Loraine and Jayne begin interviews.
August 23, 1999 Media release is issued.
September 27, 1999 Loraine and Jayne complete interviews. Interviews two-thirds complete
October 4, 1999 Loraine and Jayne meet with Coordinating Committee and describe results of interviews. Committee makes suggestions for action plan and for resource materials for seniors' use.
October 25, 1999 Loraine completes literature review that is to be incorporated into project report. Literature review one-third done
November 8, 1999 Loraine completes the first draft of the project report. Project report is distributed to Coordinating Committee and to Jayne Whyte.
November 15, 1999 Coordinating Committee provides feedback on project report (meeting). Jayne provides feedback on project report. Loraine prepares a second draft of project report.
November 29, 1999 Loraine completes first draft of seniors' resource materials. Seniors' resource materials are distributed to Coordinating Committee and to Jayne.
December 6, 1999 Coordinating Committee provides feedback on resource materials (meeting). Jayne provides feedback on resource materials. Loraine prepares a second draft of resource materials. Coordinating Committee makes suggestions for dissemination of project report and seniors' resource materials (meeting).
December 20, 1999 Loraine completes the dissemination plan.
January 16, 2000 Loraine makes any additional changes to materials that may be needed .
February 1, 2000 Project is formally completed.
Ongoing throughout 2000 Materials are distributed, media releases and summaries are issued, Coordinating Committee meets with government officials.
Project Coordinating Committee has been appointed. Project staff has been contracted. Project plan has been completed along with accompanying materials such as interview consent form, demographic survey for interview participants and package for approval by University of Regina's Research Ethics Board. Project Coordinating Committee has met twice. Approval to proceed with interviews has been received from University of Regina's Research Ethics Board. Interviews are two-thirds done. Literature review is one-third done (most relevant literature has been identified and collected). Media release has been issued.
We would be pleased to provide you with more information about our project. We are also willing to share:
Please contact:
Loraine Thompson
Loraine Thompson Information Services
#401 2305 Victoria Avenue
Regina, SK
S4P 0S7
Phone and fax: (306) 757-2306
E-mail: ltisl@sk.sympatico.ca
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Coordinating Committee
The Regina Project got off to a good start with appointment of a coordinating committee, comprised of seniors and representatives of agencies that work with seniors, in late May 1999. This committee is providing overall direction for the project and advising on the research strategy and on the materials that will be developed.
The following public information activities have been completed. Their purpose is to inform seniors, government officials and the public about the existence of our project.
Seniors' Education Centre Hosts Government Officials
Late in October 1999 information packages about the Regina Seniors' Quality of Life Project were sent to the following people:
- Regina Mayor and all members of City Council
- Judy Junor, Minister Responsible for Seniors
Premier Roy Romanow & Deputy Premier Dwain Lingenfelter received copies of these letters
Pat Atkinson, Minister of Health
Glenn Hagel, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Skills Training
Jim Melenchuk, Minister of Education- Elwin Hermanson, Leader of the Opposition
- Con Hnatiuk, Deputy Minister of Health
- Neil Yates, Deputy Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Skills Training
This activity was very productive in terms of making government officials aware of the factors that affect seniors' quality of life. To date, the following officials have either visited the Seniors' Education Centre to get more information about our project or set a firm date for a January visit:
- Glenn Hagel, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Skills Training
- Neil Yates, Deputy Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Skills Training
- Judy Junor, Minister in Charge of Seniors
- Pat Inglis and Eileen Badiuk, Representatives of the Continuing Care Branch, Saskatchewan Health
Seniors' Quality of Life Project Chair and Head of Seniors' Education Centre Speak to Community Groups About Project
The intent of our project is to provide background materials so that interested seniors can assume ownership over social action activities relating to seniors' quality of life. One social action activity will be presentations to community groups. To date, three community presentations have been confirmed:
- February 2000 - The Rev. Dr. Don King, Director of the Seniors' Education Centre will be speaking to Regina Health Districts' 50+ Advisory Committee.
- February 2000 - Beth Smith, Project Chair, will be making a presentation to the Gyros Club, a local service club.
- March 2, 2000 - Beth Smith, Project Chair and the Rev. Dr. Don King, Director of the Seniors' Education Centre will be speaking about the project at a Seniors' Education Centre Noon-Hour Forum
Regina Health District Partners with Seniors' Education Centre on Seniors' Quality of Life Project
Regina Health District is partnering with the Seniors' Education Centre in the Seniors' Quality of Life project by conducting interviews with rural seniors.
Dale Young, who works with the Public Health Branch of the Health District, and two rural seniors comprise the Rural Subcommittee of the Seniors Action Plan Steering Committee (a joint planning committee of the City of Regina and the Regina Health District). Beth Smith and Bruce Rice, two members of our Seniors' Quality of Life Coordinating Committee are also members of the Seniors' Action Plan Steering Committee.
When Dale described the work that we are doing to a group of rural seniors, the Rural Subcommittee of the Seniors' Action Plan Steering Committee thought that interviews with rural seniors would be a good supplement to what has already been done.
Therefore, they developed interview questions and interview protocols parallel to those that Jayne and I used when we did our interviews earlier this year. I checked with the University of Regina Ethics Committee regarding this process and the Chairman of the Ethics Committee said that there is no problem with another agency using our interview questions and protocols.Bruce assisted with this project by dividing the Health District into five rural areas. A total of 10 interviews are being done by Dale and her team - two interviews in each rural area. Dale will be doing five interviews and the two volunteer seniors who are working with her on this project will be doing five.
Dale and her team are attempting to balance the interviews they are doing so they get approximately equal numbers of females and males, representatives from town, farm and beach properties, people who live in their own homes and people who live in seniors' complexes.
The interviews will be completed by January 7, 2000. Dale and her team are getting together on January 14 to discuss their findings and identify major themes. A short report outlining the major themes will be prepared after this meeting.
This work is a valuable supplement to the interviews that Jayne and I did. Jayne and I interviewed seniors living primarily in the Regina and Fort Qu'Appelle areas. This work will provide broader geographic coverage and also more diversity in living situations. For example Dale and her team will interview people living on farms and beach properties.
I will wait until the third week of January 2000 to complete our Action Plan, so that I can incorporate the findings of the Regina Health District, and thus produce a stronger and more comprehensive document.