OBJECTIVES: As the highest spender on long-term care per gross domestic product, the Netherlands reformed it long-term care policy encouraging older adults to age in place with the help of informal caregivers. However, it remains unknown if the offered care and support options are aligned with their needs and preferences. Discrete choice experiments (DCE) are increasingly used to identify individual preferences. This study outlines the development of the attributes and corresponding attribute levels for a DCE on the aging in place preferences of older adults and informal caregivers in the Netherlands.

METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were held across the Netherlands with older adults and informal caregivers (N =28) to identify important components that enable older adult to successfully age in place. Interviews were transcribed and reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify relevant patterns within the data which lead to list of attributes. Visuals of the attributes were created and will be presented to mixed informal caregiver and older adult focus groups to rank attributes and identify attribute levels. Focus groups will be held until saturation is reached, which is expected at N=6.

RESULTS: Current attributes identified include: housing; personal care; daily activities; transportation; social activities; digital skills; information and assistance on organizing care were important for study participants to successfully age in place. The focus groups will identify if older adults and informal caregivers have different priorities. A final list of attributes and their levels will be presented at the conference.

CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide a detailed description of the process of attribute development and level selection of our DCE study. This transparency helps to ensure the quality of the final DCE study, and the template can be used by other researchers to guide their process of attribute development and level selection.