The association between assistive device use and the change in informal caregiving hours among community-dwelling older adults: analysis of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Objective: To investigate whether assistive device (AD) use within the past 12 months (self-reported at baseline) affects the change in the amount of informal caregiving hours received over time (three-years), among community-dwelling older adults (≥ 65 years) in comparison to those who did not use AD at all. Methods: Data from the Tracking (n = 236) and Comprehensive (n = 420) cohorts of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Ageing (CLSA) were analysed using multiple linear regression models to regress the changes in the amount of informal caregiving hours received (follow-up - baseline) on AD use (yes/no) while accounting for a set of sociodemographic, health, functionality, psychological, and support covariates. Results: We did not find significant associations between AD use and changes in the amount of informal care hours received among older adults (Tracking cohort:β̂= 3.10, 95% CI = −77.98 to 84.17; Comprehensive cohort:β̂= −5.05, 95% CI = −47.19 to 37.09). Conclusions: Our results did not provide sufficient evidence for an association between AD use and informal caregiver time. Future studies addressing this issue should employ longer follow-up periods, analyse by device type, and obtain caregiving hours directly from informal caregivers. Nonetheless, these findings remain valuable for informing future research directions, prompting re-examination of existing theories, and guiding evidence-based policy and practice decisions.