Resumen de Does assistive technology substitute for personal assistance among the disabled elderly?

Helen Hoenig, Donald H, Jr Taylor,, Frank A. Sloan

• Objectives: This study examined whether use of equipment (technological assistance) to cope with disability was associated with use of fewer hours of help from another person (personal assistance).; Methods: In a cross-sectional study of 2368 community dwellers older than 65 years with 1 or more limitations in basic activities of daily living (ADLs) from the 1994 National Long Term Care Survey, the relation between technological assistance and personal assistance was examined.; Results: Among people with ADL limitations, multivariate models showed a strong and consistent relation between technological assistance and personal assistance, whereby use of equipment was associated with fewer hours of help.; Conclusions: Among people with disability, use of assistive technology was associated with use of fewer hours of personal assistance.;