Technical aids and their social impact on the autonomy of older adults in the Guaytacama parish

Abstract

The research was born from the experiences lived during the project “Community Mental Health Wheels”, carried out in this rural parish of Guaytacama in the province of Cotopaxi, Ecuador, in this context it became clear that older adults had limited access to technical aids. In this study, a descriptive qualitative methodology was applied, using semi-structured interviews as the main data collection technique, which allowed an in-depth exploration of the experiences, emotions, perceptions and sociocultural barriers faced by older adults when using technical aids; the study was based on ethical principles, guaranteeing the confidentiality and informed consent of the interviewees.The population chosen for the study were older adults residing in the rural parish of Guaytacama who use technical aids in their daily lives and who have sufficient cognitive capacities to participate in interviews, a non-probabilistic intentional samplingwas used, selecting ten participants for the collection of information. The analysis of the results of this research was structured in three fundamental dimensions that allow a comprehensive understanding of the impact of technical aids in the lives of older adults, this has shown that older adults perceive technical aids as crucial tools to recover the ability to perform daily activities, reduce the risk of falls and actively participate in productive or domestic tasks, which generates a positive impact on their perception of the aging process.