Sociodemographic and health profile of institutionalized people aged 65 and over

Abstract

Introduction: Accommodation for people aged 65 and over in social institutions is often the only opportunity for their physical survival. Revealing the specific characteristics of elderly people living in institutions will help the understanding and satisfaction of their different needs, and hopefully will increase their quality of life. Aim: The aim of this study is to reveal the sociodemographic and health profile of institutionalized people aged 65 and over. Materials and Methods: Sociodemographic and health information for age, gender, education, marital status, diagnosed diseases and mobility for all 175 people aged 65 and over, living in four residential homes in Varna and Provadia was extracted from their records. Results: The most prevalent group among the studied participants is women, and those in the age group 81–85 years. Most of the residents are widowers with upper secondary education. The leading diagnosis among the institutionalized elderly are those from ICD class IX: Diseases of the Circulatory System. Most of the people have limited mobility and use assistive technology (AT). People with normal and limited mobility have an almost equal share, as the first group is 44% and the second—46.3%. The remaining nearly 10% are severely disabled (unable to leave the bed). Conclusion: The sociodemographic and health profile of institutionalised elderly people provides necessary information to health professionals for the health needs of that specific group of the population.