Elder abuse and hospitalization in rural Malaysia

Abstract

Our study aims to describe and determine factors associated with hospitalization among victims of elder abuse and neglect (EAN) in rural Malaysia. A cross sectional study based on the baseline data of the Malaysian Elder Mistreatment Project (MAESTRO) collected from November 2013 until July 2014 involving 1927 older adults in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan was conducted. EAN was determined using the modified Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) and hospitalization rates were determined based on self-report. The prevalence of overall EAN was 8.1% (95%CI 6.9–9.3). Among male respondents, 9.5% revealed history of abuse and among female respondents, 7.2% reported experiencing EAN. The annual hospitalization rates per 100 persons within the past one year among EAN victims and non-victims were 18 per 100 persons (SD = 46.1) and 15 per 100 persons (SD = 64.1) respectively. Among respondents with history of EAN, 16.0% (n = 21) had been hospitalized in the past 12 months while among respondents with no EAN experience, 10.2% (n = 153) were hospitalized. Multivariable analyses using Poisson regression did not show any significant association between EAN and hospitalization. This could be due to the complex interactions between medical and social circumstances that play a role in hospital admissions, factors affecting the health care system, and access to health care among EAN victims.

Relationship between three dietary indices and health-related quality of life among rural elderly in China: a cross-sectional study

“…Due to urbanization, most young people start to work and live in the cities, while the older people remain in the rural areas (3). As a result, the quality of life of the elderly living in rural areas has attracted attention (4,5). Older people in rural China generally have inadequate nutritional intake (6), which is extremely detrimental to their nutritional health (7).…”

Sociodemographic aspects and functional capacity associated with physical violence in hospitalized elderly people

“…Independentemente da motivação, a violência física se faz presente especialmente, no ambiente intrafamiliar e acarreta sofrimento, transtornos depressivos e de ansiedade, e danos à saúde física da pessoa idosa, incluindo declínio cognitivo e fragilidade (4) . Importa realçar que a violência se associa à prevalência de doenças crônicas não transmissíveis, e podem intensificar repercussões negativas, como lesões, outras doenças, baixa produtividade, isolamento, internações hospitalares, dependência funcional e mortalidade (8)(9) . Sobre a dependência funcional, esta pode ser definida pelo comprometimento da capacidade funcional, a qual representa as habilidades relacionadas à execução de atividades diárias com independência e autonomia (10) , nomeadamente, na capacidade de a pessoa cuidar de si, realizar as atividades básicas, instrumentais e avançadas de vida diária, podendo determinar importantes desfechos, como a ocorrência de VCPI, redução das atividades sociais, risco de hospitalização e institucionalização (11) .…”