Investigating the relationship between spiritual health and quality of life of elderly members of the Social Security Pensioners Center of Semnan city in 2012

Dissertation for Master's Degree in Healthcare Management

Abstract

Context and purpose: Population aging is one of the most important social developments. Aging is associated with many costs, one of the most important of which is in the healthcare sector.  The main goal of health organizations in providing services to the elderly is to improve their quality of life, create an independent life and prevent disabilities. Spiritual health is one of the dimensions of health without which other biological, psychological and social dimensions cannot function properly and as a result the highest level of quality of life cannot be achieved. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between spiritual health and the quality of life of the elderly members of the Semnan Retired Association. Method: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational study that was conducted during 2012/93. 300 elderly members of Semnan City Retired Association participated in it. The research tools were the demographic information questionnaire, the 36-question quality of life questionnaire, and the Paltozin Wallison spiritual health questionnaire, and the data were collected through interviews. The data was analyzed by SPSS21 software. Descriptive statistics and Chi-square, independent t, Mann-Whitney, one-way analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis and Spearman correlation tests were used to achieve the research objectives. Findings: 80% (241 people) of the elderly have reported a good spiritual health status. The average score of the total quality of life of the elderly is 61.6 ± 21.8, the score of mental and physical health is 62.16 ± 24.2 and 60.03 ± 24.5, respectively. The results of the Pearson correlation test showed that there is a positive and significant correlation between spiritual health and its dimensions with the quality of life and its various dimensions (P>0.01), so that the strongest correlations were reported with the vitality dimension (r=0.492), perceived mental health (r=0.405) respectively (P>0.01).

Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the spiritual health of the elderly with Their quality of life is related. The elderly in every era are the mirror of the future of the young and the middle-aged, therefore, considering the relationship between spiritual health and quality of life, it is recommended that educational interventions be made with a focus on promoting spiritual health and in order to improve the quality of life.

Keywords: elderly, quality of life, spiritual health

1-1 Introduction

Aging is a global phenomenon that in the future It will soon be raised as one of the most important social and welfare challenges of developing countries. Currently, the elderly (population 60 years and older) have the highest population growth rate in the world compared to other groups (WHO 2012). These changes are a sign of a revolution in the demographic dimension of societies, which requires the strict attention of policymakers around the world (Teymoori, Dadkhah et al. 2006). Quality of life is considered a basic indicator and since it includes several dimensions such as physiological aspects, performance and existence of the individual, it is of particular importance to pay attention to it (Ahmadi, Salar, 2013). Health has four physical, mental, social and spiritual dimensions, and the spiritual dimension of health is effective on other aspects of health such as physical and mental health. Knowing about the level of quality of life of the elderly and knowing the relationship between each aspect of health and quality of life seems essential. 2-1 Statement of the problem and the importance of the research Healthy aging is the right of all human beings, and this adds to the importance of the phenomenon of aging and preventing its problems (Tajor, 2013). Worldwide, the growth rate of people 60 and older is faster than other age groups. In 2025, we will have a total of 1.2 billion people over the age of 60 worldwide. In 2002, approximately 400 million elderly people aged 60 and over lived in developing countries. It is estimated that by 2025, this number will increase to 840 million, which is 70% of the world's elderly. In 2050, the population over 60 will reach 2 billion people, 80% of whom will be in developing countries. However, aging is a global phenomenon. Now this phenomenon is happening at the fastest speed in low and middle income countries.Although Europe and Japan were the first countries to experience population aging, the most dramatic changes are currently taking place in countries such as Cuba, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Mongolia (WHO 2012).

Iran, as a developing country due to the population bomb of the 1360s, is facing a larger than expected population of elderly people in the future, and the elderly population of Iran will increase from the current 8% to 22% per year. 1425 will increase (Iran Statistics Center, 2016). This demographic crisis will create a tsunami phenomenon for the elderly in Iran (Darvishpour, 2011). According to the last general census conducted in the country in 2013, the elderly population of the country has increased nearly 4 times between 2015 and 2015. The average annual growth of the elderly population between 1385-1990 is estimated at 3.9%, while this ratio is estimated at 1.29% for the entire country's population (Iran Statistics Center, 2010). From the perspective of demography, according to the current structure of the population, the number of elderly people is increasing, and under such conditions, special social policies regarding this increasing population should be formulated and implemented; Otherwise, this phenomenon appears as a social problem (Iranian Statistics Center, 2013).

The issue of health and its connection with increasing life years has created many challenges in the current era. The increase in human life expectancy and the increase of the elderly population is one of the achievements of the 21st century, and the aging of the population is a phenomenon that some human societies have faced or will face (Pashashreifi, 2010). Although the increase in the elderly population indicates the success of the health system in providing health, treatment and care services, it indicates a large population of elderly people who have various social, economic, psychological, physiological and pathological problems (Gilhooly, Hanlon et al. 2007, WHO 2012). Being affected by various human dimensions of the elderly, especially in countries such as Iran that do not have strong social and welfare structures, significantly affects the quality of life of the elderly (Knurowski, Durdica et al. 2004). The quality of life is the measure of the best energy or strength in a person, which is used for the successful adaptation of a person to existing challenges. Several factors have an effect on the quality of life of the elderly, including the lack of periods of old age, which causes a decrease in cognitive adaptation and a decrease in self-reliance (Jadeidi, 2010). Quality of life is the ultimate goal in providing various social and welfare services to age and social groups, including the elderly, and is beyond the performance and ability of a specific organization or institution.  The central core of quality of life is health. Being affected by the quality of life of the elderly has been so important from the point of view of researchers and experts that the beginning and development of the concept of quality of life was on the age group of the elderly and then it was developed to other research groups (Darwishpour, 2010). Population aging is one of the most important social changes (WHO 2012). The aging process is accompanied by health problems and a decrease in the level of activities. With increasing age, physical dysfunction increases and its negative effect on the ability to maintain independence increases the need for help, which can be effective in reducing the quality of life of the elderly (Asefzadeh, 2008). Compared to developed countries, often the socio-economic progress of developing countries does not keep pace with the rapid rate of population aging; In other words, developed countries grow a lot in terms of well-being before they become old, while developing countries grow old before a fundamental increase in well-being takes place (WHO 2002). Also, the burden of poor health is unevenly distributed between the elderly in low- and middle-income countries and the elderly in rich countries. The rate of death and disability in low and middle income countries is much higher than in rich countries. These low-income and weak countries have limited infrastructure to meet the needs of the elderly. The rapid demographic transition provides developing countries with less time to provide the necessary infrastructure to provide services to the elderly (WHO 2012).

The global growth of the elderly population is considered an important challenge both for health and treatment service providers and for family members and the society in which the elderly live (Marais, Conradie et al. 2006).