Janet Roebuck

Bio: Janet Roebuck is an academic researcher from University of New Mexico. The author has contributed to research in topics: Public policy & Social perception. The author has an hindex of 4, co-authored 5 publications receiving 211 citations.

Grandma as Revolutionary: Elderly Women and Some Modern Patterns of Social Change.

Abstract: Despite the disadvantages they face, women in western nations have coped very successfully with the problems of aging during the past century and, with limited material resources, have responded positively to great social and personal changes. Although women make up the majority of the elderly population, these achievements have received little attention. As we face the continued aging of the population and its attendant massive social changes in a setting of increasingly scarce resources, it is essential that all aspects of female aging be studied more closely. They may well provide us with the insights necessary to clarify our vision of the past and future and provide us with appropriate models for survival in a less-than-ideal world.

Sleep, cognition, and normal aging: integrating a half century of multidisciplinary research.

Abstract: Sleep is implicated in cognitive functioning in young adults. With increasing age, there are substantial changes to sleep quantity and quality, including changes to slow-wave sleep, spindle density, and sleep continuity/fragmentation. A provocative question for the field of cognitive aging is whether such changes in sleep physiology affect cognition (e.g., memory consolidation). We review nearly a half century of research across seven diverse correlational and experimental domains that historically have had little crosstalk. Broadly speaking, sleep and cognitive functions are often related in advancing age, though the prevalence of null effects in healthy older adults (including correlations in the unexpected, negative direction) indicates that age may be an effect modifier of these associations. We interpret the literature as suggesting that maintaining good sleep quality, at least in young adulthood and middle age, promotes better cognitive functioning and serves to protect against age-related cognitive declines.

Standard set of health outcome measures for older persons

Abstract: Background: The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) was founded in 2012 to propose consensus-based measurement tools and documentation for different conditions and populations.This article describes how the ICHOM Older Person Working Group followed a consensus-driven modified Delphi technique to develop multiple global outcome measures in older persons. The standard set of outcome measures developed by this group will support the ability of healthcare systems to improve their care pathways and quality of care. An additional benefit will be the opportunity to compare variations in outcomes which encourages and supports learning between different health care systems that drives quality improvement. These outcome measures were not developed for use in research. They are aimed at non researchers in healthcare provision and those who pay for these services. Methods: A modified Delphi technique utilising a value based healthcare framework was applied by an international panel to arrive at consensus decisions.To inform the panel meetings, information was sought from literature reviews, longitudinal ageing surveys and a focus group. Results: The outcome measures developed and recommended were participation in decision making, autonomy and control, mood and emotional health, loneliness and isolation, pain, activities of daily living, frailty, time spent in hospital, overall survival, carer burden, polypharmacy, falls and place of death mapped to a three tier value based healthcare framework. Conclusions: The first global health standard set of outcome measures in older persons has been developed to enable health care systems improve the quality of care provided to older persons.