Self-efficacy, resilience and healthy ageing among older people who have an acute hospital admission: A cross-sectional study

Aim: To examine the associations between self-efficacy, resilience and healthy ageing among older people who have an acute hospital admission. Design: A cross-sectional study. Methods: Survey and medical record data were collected from older people on discharge from hospital. The survey measured self-efficacy with the 6-item General Self-Efficacy scale (GSE-6), resilience with the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), and healthy ageing with the Selfie Ageing Index (SAI). Medical record data included potential confounders: co-morbidities, frailty items, previous falls and previous admission in the last 28 days. Multi-linear regression and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient were used to examine the independent associations between self-efficacy, resilience and healthy ageing. Results: Responses were received from 143 older people (mean age 79). After adjusting for potential confounders, co-morbidities (beta = - 0.08, p = 0.001) remained negatively associated with healthy ageing, while self-efficacy (beta = 0.03, p = 0.005) and resilience (beta = 0.05, p < 0.001) remained positively associated with healthy ageing (R-2 = 0.243). Positive correlations were found between self-efficacy (rho = 0.33, p < 0.01), resilience (rho = 0.38, p < 0.001) and healthy ageing. Positive correlations were also found between self-efficacy and resilience (rho = 0.38, p < 0.01). Those with lower self-efficacy and resilience were more likely to report reduced activities of daily living, mobility, physical activity and mood. Conclusion: Findings indicate that while the number of co-morbidities have negative consequences for healthy ageing among older people who are hospitalised, the promotion of self-efficacy and resilience can potentially contribute to healthy ageing within the physical and psychological domains.