The 4th International Conference on Nursing

Author :

(1) (1) Ni Putu Wulan Purnama Sari; (2)Jintana Artsanthia

Affiliation :

(1) Faculty of Nursing, Widya Mandala Catholic University Surabaya (WMCUS), Indonesia; (2) Faculty of Nursing, Saint Louis College (SLC); Yannawa, Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract :

Introduction Age, sex, education level, occupation, and income are often correlated with individual’s quality of life (QOL). Adjustment to the new role and physical changes, chronic illnesses, financial insecurity related to retirement, and increased dependence to others are potential causes of increased stress level and decreased QOL in elderly. This study aimed to analyze the correlation between demographic variable (age and sex), social determinant (education level, occupation, and monthly income), physical parameter (blood pressure/ BP and blood sugar/ BS level), and stress level with QOL in chronically ill elderly. Methods This cross-sectional study involved 100 and 96 elderly with hypertension (HT) and/or diabetes mellitus (DM) in communities of Bangkok and Surabaya respectively (n=196). There were 60 DM, 68 HT, and 68 DM&HT cases compiled from both sites. Instruments used were demography questionnaire, SPST-20, and WHOQOL-BREF. Rank Spearman correlation test was used for data analysis (α=.05). Results Study sites was not correlated with QOL (p=.210). There was no significant correlation between age, sex, occupation, income, BP, BS level, and stress level with QOL (p>α); while there was a weak significant correlation between education level and QOL (ρ=.218; p=.002). Conclusion Age, sex, occupation, income, BP, BS level, and stress level are not correlated with QOL. Education level is weakly correlated with QOL in chronically ill elderly.

Keywords :

Age; Blood Pressure; Blood Glucose; Chronic Illness; Demography; Diabetes Mellitus; Education Level; Elderly; Gender; Hypertension; Income; Occupation; Quality Of Life; Sex; Stress.