Social and functional status of older persons in a north Indian community

With increase in life expectancy, the geriatric population is growing in developing countries. The Union Territory of Chandigarh has a population of about 0.9 million with nearly 90% in urban and 10% in rural areas. This cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted in Chandigarh over a period of one year; 1998-99 among 362 subjects 65 years or more of age covering a population of 7937 family members in 1882 houses. The sampling was done by random sampling technique covering urban and rural population. The proportion of older persons in Chandigarh comprised 5.47% of the population. Most of the respondents were living with their spouses. More than one-fifth of urban and two third of rural older persons were illiterate. About 86% were living with their families and only 3.6% were living alone. Major modes of recreation were visiting religious places by two-thirds followed by going to parks and gardens by nearly one-fourth. Among 203 older persons having living partners in the study, one in every fifth older persons had indulged in sexual intercourse in the past six months. Nearly 2% of older persons needed assistance (partial or full) in activities of daily living like bathing, dressing, toileting, feeding, continence etc. The study also observed rural and urban variation in the use of aids and appliances by older persons. On the basis of very few having functional limitations, there is a need to include components of recreational facilities, activities of daily living, and not just assistance and aids and appliances, while developing a comprehensive geriatric health care programme in developing countries.