Performance of basic activities of daily living by older riverine residents of the Amazon region

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate how older adults perform basic activities of daily living (ABVD) in the riverine context of the Amazon region. METHODS: A qualitative study with older adults and caregivers from riverine communities in XXXXX/XX, considering three landscape profiles (upland, floodplain, and floating houses). Four focus groups with older adults and one with caregivers were formed. For further exploration and identification of patterns in ABVD, nine in-depth interviews with older adults and three with caregivers were conducted with informed consent. The accounts were transcribed and analyzed using Descending Hierarchical Classification (CHD), Correspondence Analysis (AC), and Word Cloud (NP), with IRaMuTeQ software, as well as content analysis. RESULTS: CHD generated four classes of ABVD (bathing, dressing, mobility, and eating); AC identified relevant words by landscape profile, with “jirau” standing out among older adults from the floodplain. NP indicated “bathing” and “dressing” as central for older adults, and “eating” for caregivers. CONCLUSIONS: The performance of ABVD has sociocultural specificities associated with the level of functional dependence and the community's landscape profile.