Quality of life of older adults in nursing homes in Vietnam

Health-Related Quality of Life among Older Adults with Dementia Living in Vietnamese Nursing Homes

Better understanding of the quality of life among nursing home residents with dementia is important for developing interventions. The objectives of this cross-sectional study were to examine factors associated with poor health-related quality of life in older people with dementia living in nursing homes in Hanoi, Vietnam. In-person interviews were conducted with 140 adults who were 60 years and older with dementia, and information about their quality of life was obtained using the Quality of Life in Alzheimer's Disease (QOL-AD) scale. The sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with poor health-related quality of life (lowest quartile) were assessed through the results of physical tests, interviews with nursing home staff, and review of medical records. The average age of the study sample was 78.3 years, 65% were women, and their average QOL-AD total score was 27.3 (SD = 4.4). Malnutrition, total dependence in activities of daily living, and urinary incontinence were associated with poor quality of life after controlling for multiple potentially confounding factors. Our findings show that Vietnamese nursing home residents with dementia have a moderate total quality of life score, and interventions based on comprehensive geriatric assessment remain needed to modify risk factors related to poor health-related quality of life.

Person-Centered Climate, Garden Greenery and Well-Being among Nursing Home Residents: A Cross-Sectional Study

Nursing home residents' well-being is often proxy-rated in studies, and few studies have explored the association between resident-rated person-centered climate, garden greenery, and resident-rated well-being. A cross-sectional study was conducted. Questionnaire data from a convenient sample of 470 nursing home residents in a city in Southeast China in 2021 were analyzed using multiple linear regressions, with block-wise models. The instruments used were the Person-centered Climate Questionnaire-Patient version, the Nursing Home Greenery Index, and, for well-being, the EuroQol-Visual Analogue Scale, the Life Satisfaction Questionnaire, and the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (depression symptoms). In the unadjusted models, the person-centered climate was positively associated with general health (β 0.29, p < 0.001), person-centered climate and greenery with life satisfaction (β 0.39, and 0.18; both p < 0.001), and negatively with depression (β -0.28, and β -0.23, both p < 0.001). After adjusting for personal and nursing home characteristics, the associations between person-centered climate, greenery, and well-being remained statistically significant. The three models explained 36%, 35%, and 21% of the variance in general health, life satisfaction, and depression, respectively. This study provides knowledge on person-centered climate in long-term care and the access to greenery.

Psycho-Religious Therapy improving the Quality of Life of the Elderly in Nursing Homes

Abstract BACKGROUND As people get older, body functions in the elderly will decrease so that it will affect their quality of life. One way to improve the quality of life of the elderly is to meet the basic needs of the elderly through a spiritual approach (Islamic psychotherapy).    AIM: This study aims to determine the effect of Zikr on the quality of life of the elderly in nursing homes.    METHODS: This study used a quasi-experimental nonequivalent control group design. The sampling technique used purposive sampling , a total of 10 respondents from the intervention group and 10 respondents from the control group. Quality of life score using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF). The research analysis used paired t-test and Wilcoxon test for differences in quality-of-life scores of each group and for differences in quality of life between the intervention group and control group using unpaired t-test and Mann-Whitney test.    RESULTS: The effect of psycho-religious therapy (Zikr) on the quality of life of the elderly in the intervention group before and after doing Zikr (p = 0.000), there were differences in 3 domains of quality of life, namely the psychological domain ( p = 0.000), the domain of social relations (p = 0.027), and the environmental domain.  p = 0.010).    CONCLUSION: Psycho-religious therapy (Zikr) affects the quality of life of the elderly in the nursing home and suggests Nursing homes to provide guidance with a religious approach, especially Zikr to improve the quality of life of the elderly.  

Quality of life of older people in nursing homes in China–evaluation and application of the Chinese version of the life satisfaction questionnaire

Background

Chinese and global populations are aging, and more older people are living in nursing homes in China. However, there is a lack of research measuring nursing home residents’ quality of life (QOL), and especially associations with nursing home types (publicly versus privately run). Therefore, this study aimed to determine the construct validity and internal consistency of the Chinese version of the life satisfaction questionnaire (LSQ-Chinese) and determine the associations between nursing home types (publicly versus privately run), residents’ sociodemographic characteristics, and their QOL.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey measuring QOL among older people living in nursing homes was conducted (n = 419). Confirmatory factor analysis and Cronbach’s alpha were used to assess the construct validity and reliability of the LSQ-Chinese. In addition, multivariate regression analysis was used to examine these associations.

Results

Confirmatory factor analysis indicated acceptable goodness-of-fit statistics for the seven-factor LSQ solution. All factors and the total scale had good internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha values > 0.70. The two factors with the highest QOL scores (higher scores indicate a more desirable state) were “physical symptoms” and “socioeconomic situation,” and those with the lowest QOL scores were “quality of close-friend relationships” and “quality of daily activities fun”. Residents living in privately run nursing homes had higher LSQ scores overall and for all factors except “physical symptoms” and “sickness impact” compared with publicly run nursing homes. Multivariate analyses indicated that marital status, number of chronic diseases, education level, main source of income, and nursing home type significantly contributed to the variance in the total LSQ scores. The associated sociodemographic variables differed between the factors, and the variable publicly versus privately run was significant for five of the seven factors.

Conclusions

The LSQ is a suitable instrument for measuring the QOL of Chinese nursing home residents. The total LSQ score was higher among residents in privately run nursing homes than in publicly run ones. According to residents’ needs, staff should work for person-centered activities, and facilitate residents’ social interactions with friends, as both these aspects were scored relatively low.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-022-03040-4.

Impacts of age and marital status on the elderly's quality of life in an elderly social institution

Background: Living a life of good quality is important for everyone. This research aimed to get an overview of the quality of life (QOL) of the elderly in an elderly social institution in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Design and Methods: This descriptive study with a cross-sectional design included 107 participants using simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using an abbreviated World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) and analyzed using statistical software, Mann Whitney and Kruskal Wallis test.

Results: The mean quality of life of the elderly’s was 66.09 (scale: 0–100), with a mean QOL of 67.58 in the physical domain, 66.26 in the psychological domain, 64.64 in the social relationships domain, and 65.88 in the environment domain. Regarding age and marital status, there was a significant difference in the mean QOL of the elderly living in the elderly social institution (p=0.017 and 0.001). In contrast, there was no significant difference in their mean QOL in terms of gender, level of education, and length of stay (p=0.323, 0.164, and 0.697).

Conclusions: The low quality of life of the elderly is our concern. The staff in the elderly social institution could develop some activities for the elderly to increase the elderly’s QOL, such as making daily activities plans and the evaluation of those activities.

Clinical study of mesenchymal stem/stromal cell therapy for the treatment of frailty: a proposed experimental design for therapeutic and mechanistic investigation

Frailty, a specific condition of increased vulnerability and reduced general health associated with aging in older people, is an emerging problem worldwide with major implications for clinical practice and public health. Recent preclinical and clinical studies have supported the safety of mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) in the treatment of frailty. Comprehensive study is needed to assess the interrelationship between the condition of frailty and the effects of MSC-based therapy. This randomized controlled phase I/II trial aims to investigate the safety and potential therapeutic efficacy of the allogeneic administration of umbilical cord-derived MSCs (UC-MSCs) in combination with the standard treatment for frailty in Vietnam. Moreover, this study describes the rationales, study designs, methodologies and analytical strategies currently employed in stem cell research and clinical studies. The primary outcome measures will include the incidences of prespecified administration-associated adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs). The potential efficacy will be evaluated based on improvements in frailty conditions (including those determined through a physical examination, patient-reported outcomes, quality of life, immune markers of frailty, metabolism analysis, and cytokine markers from patient plasma). This clinical trial and stem cell analysis associated with patient sampling at different timepoints aim to identify and characterize the potential effects of UC-MSCs on improving frailty based on the stem cell quality, cytokine/growth factor secretion profiles of UC-MSCs, cellular senescence, and metabolic analysis of patient CD3+ cells providing fundamental knowledge for designing and implementing research strategies in future studies.

Greater Risk of Negative Health Outcomes of Older Adults Living Alone in Vietnam: A Community Survey

In modern Asian societies, there has been a shift in the living arrangements of older adults away from living with others. Knowing the health characteristics of individuals living alone can help identify high-risk groups. This cross-sectional study aimed to describe characteristics of the Vietnamese older adults and to investigate the association between living alone and their reported health outcomes by utilizing survey data of individuals aged ≥60 years in Vietnam in 2018. The community survey included questions about sociodemographic factors, living arrangement, and self-reported physical functional status. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine whether or not living alone was a predictor of health outcomes. Of 725 study participants, 8.9% lived alone. These participants were more likely to be female, aged 70–79 years, living in rural areas, and currently single or previously married. After adjusting for covariates, older adults who were living alone were more likely to have arthritis (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.95, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10–3.45), a history of falling (AOR = 2.44, 95% CI: 1.02–5.82), visual difficulties (AOR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.04–3.41), feelings of loneliness (AOR = 1.95, 95% CI: 1.10–3.47), and high fear of falling (AOR = 1.88, 95% CI: 1.02–3.46). Older adults living alone in Vietnam were at greater risk of negative health consequences than those living with others. Screening and providing adequate social support for this specific population is important in preventing the adverse effects of solitary living among these older adults.