Principal Investigator:               Professor Bernadette McGuinness                                    

Name of the Study:                   NICOLA WAVE 3

Why is this Study important?

Life expectancy is rising in Northern Ireland. It is predicted that 1 in 4 children born here today will celebrate their 100th birthday. While this trend is good news, by 2048 almost half of the population will be aged over 50 years, which poses challenges for our society and policy makers.

At present there are no other studies in Northern Ireland that will look at such an array of topics that provide a fuller understanding of the ageing process. In 2012, NICOLA was set up to explore why and how certain social, economic and biological factors are changing the lives of older people. Information gathered during this study will be used to inform and plan Northern Ireland Health and Social Care provision in the future, and to design other policies targeted towards older people.

What is the Research question/aim?:

The study recruited 8,504 people from across Northern Ireland in its first wave aiming to monitor these individuals and examine how their health, lifestyle, financial circumstances and overall wellbeing changes over the next 10 years. Now entering its 3^rd wave, NICOLA participants will be asked to take part in a computer-assisted personal interview, in their own home, with a researcher and also to complete and return a questionnaire.

What the Study involves:

Following this, participants will be invited to take part in a comprehensive Health Assessment in the NICRF. All health assessments are carried out by qualified and trained research nurses. The health assessment includes a range of measurements including height, weight, blood pressure, cognitive test, hearing tests, gait and balance tests, vision measurements and blood tests

Who can take part in the Study?

Participants are recruited from a sample representative of the population of Northern Ireland. Eligibility was based on the fact they needed to be aged 50 or over.

Contact Information:

www.nicola.qub.ac.uk