This thematic paper title factors that influence the usage of out of home elderly personal assistant services in Thailand.

Abstract

The purpose of this thematic paper is to explore unmet needs in ageing parent care, investigate variables that influence usage of Out-of-Home Elderly Personal Assistant Services (EPA), and test the service concept. In-depth interviews and mini focus groups were conducted on 30 respondents between November 2017 and February 2018 to gather information on factors that would influence the usage of the out-of-home elderly personal assistant services, and the likelihood of this service concept being adopted. Data were collected from two groups in the population, 30-60 years old (caretaker) and greater than 60 years (elderly) in Bangkok area. The study suggested that there are unmet needs in ageing parent care in terms of transportation and in assistance; however, the respondents stated that the degree of the unmet needs is not substantial. Factors that would drive the usage of assistant service are convenience, alternative choice, companionship and elderly empowerment – with adult children being the key decision maker and buyer. The dominant substitution of this service are family members as the sense of filial duty is deeply rooted in Thai culture. This study serves as a preliminary step for future researchers to measure the degree that each factors impact the usage decision. The study can also be expanded through dissecting the age groups of adult children into smaller ones, in order to uncover insights by subgroup.