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Giving up driving may be express lane to long-term care |
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From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Although the slower driving habits of some seniors often steam impatient younger motorists, researchers at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine have found that elders who stay behind the wheel are less likely to enter nursing homes or assisted living centers than those who have never driven or who have given up driving altogether. "We are not recommending continuation of driving for seniors who are a threat to themselves or others on the road," said Ellen Freeman, Ph.D., an epidemiological researcher now working with the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute and the study's lead author. "Instead, we hope that understanding the very real health impact that losing the ability to drive has on seniors will encourage families to plan contingencies to assist elderly members with transportation issues." The researchers also pointed out that losing the ability to drive poses an especially significant hardship to seniors living in isolated rural areas or any place without good, accessible public transportation for the elderly. "We set out to learn whether or not the loss of driving ability played a measurable role in an older person's eventual need for long-term care," said Sheila West, Ph.D., a professor of ophthalmology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. "That's a public policy issue of huge dimensions as our population ages." "This probably isn't so much about the process of driving but rather the larger issue of mobility as it relates to a person's independence," added Freeman.
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