The E’s in Research – Expertise and E-Delphi

I recently had the privilege of working with several experts in aged care environments from all over the world in a research study. I was humbled by the breadth of their knowledge and willingness to share their views on a selection of environment assessment tools in the context of refurbishing residential aged care facilities.

The study was presented at the 9th Aging and Society Conference held in Vienna September 16th and 17th with Sam presenting ‘The E’s in Research – Expertise and E-Delphi’,

As it can be expensive to do refurbishments, it becomes crucial to identify which refurbishment elements have positive impacts on resident functionality. Eighteen experts from eight countries looked at four environment assessments tools and provided their views. 

A two round adapted E-Delphi (Delphi is a survey process with the aim to reach consensus and the ‘e’ refers to doing this electronically rather than traditional pen and paper format) was completed, the data analysed and the tools ranked in order of preference for testing at a residential age care facility preparing to undergo minor refurbishment.

The presentation outlined this process and explained the findings. The manuscript on this study has been accepted by Journal of Aging and Social Change with publication due in November.