Live to a ripe old age: Assessment of Health status among elderly in a tertiary care center, South India

Abstract

The global population is progressively ageing. Growing older brings with it both challenges and opportunities. Demand for primary health care and long-term care will rise, necessitating a larger and better-trained staff. The study's goals were to determine health status among the elderly based on physical activity, nutritional status, social wellbeing, and psychological wellbeing, as well as to determine the relationship between physical activity and nutritional status, the relationship between social wellbeing and psychological wellbeing, and the relationship between health status and age and gender. A semi structured questionnaire was used to examine socio demographic data, KATZ index independence in activities of daily living, mini nutritional evaluation, Lubben social network scale, and geriatric depression scale among the elderly. During the study period, 150 patients aged 65 and up who attended a tertiary care centre in Kochi were assessed. The majority of the 150 older people tested had complete physical function, normal social wellbeing, and normal psychological wellbeing. Malnutrition was a concern for 44.7 percent of the population. The study found a weak positive relationship between physical activity and nutritional status, as well as a weak negative relationship between social and psychological well-being.  The majority of senior people had good physical activity, social, and psychological well-being, whereas 44.7 percent were at danger of malnutrition, according to the current study.