STRATEGIES DEVELOPED BY COMMUNITY-DWELLING ELDERLY PEOPLE TO LIVE ALONE

Francine Melo Da Costa,Priscila Tadei Nakata,Eliane Pinheiro De Morais

doi:10.1590/0104-07072015002730014

Abstract

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to analyze strategies developed by the elderly in order to live alone. A qualitative, exploratory research was conducted with 14 elderly individuals, who lived in a community that belongs to the area assisted by a basic health unit in a city in southern Brazil. Data were collected through interviews and analyzed by means of the thematic content analysis technique. In order to analyze the strategies, three categories were constructed, according to the identified behaviors. Strategy 1: behaviors in search of social support; strategy 2: behaviors in search of keeping active; strategy 3: behaviors in search of religiosity. The analysis of the strategies developed by the elderly enabled us to understand how they use the available resources to handle difficulties that are inherent to the process of aging.

Highlights

There is a worldwide tendency for the elderly to live alone, especially women who are older, widowed and poor.[1]
In Brazil, among people aged 60 or older, 13.8% live in one-person households – those composed of a single person
With a qualitative approach,[8] was conducted with participants selected from the cohort study Porto Alegre Longitudinal Aging (PALA)[9] and from the records of the Basic Health Unit (BHU) of a teaching hospital in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, which is a reference unit for the neighborhoods where the elderly from the PALA live

Summary

Introduction

There is a worldwide tendency for the elderly to live alone, especially women who are older, widowed and poor.[1] In Brazil, among people aged 60 or older, 13.8% live in one-person households – those composed of a single person. There is evidence of a positive correlation between the proportion of elderly individuals and the proportion of one-person household units.[2]. National studies on this subject are scarce. A study researched the diverse conditional aspects of the lives of elderly individuals who live alone. The elderly individuals received help in everyday practical situations, especially from their family members and, in lower numbers, from friends and neighbors. There was no mention of help offered by organs of the state.[3]

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Conclusion