Investigating the relationship between hospitalized elder abuse and perceived health among hospitalized older adults

Hospitalization can negatively impact older adults' health perceptions, making them vulnerable to hospitalized elder abuse. This cross-sectional correlational study investigated the relationship between hospitalized elder abuse and perceived health among 235 hospitalized older adults in Tehran, Iran in 2024. Data collection utilized the Hospitalized Elder Abuse Questionnaire (HEAQ), Health Perceptions Questionnaire (HPQ), and a personal characteristics questionnaire at the Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex. Results showed a mean hospitalized elder abuse score of 58.12 ± 16.27 and a mean perceived health score of 99.93 ± 14.02. A significant inverse relationship was found between hospitalized elder abuse and perceived health (r= -0.195, p = .004), which remained significant when accounting for contextual variables including age, marital status, mobility status, and hospitalization duration (β= -0.23, p = .007). These findings emphasize the need for timely elders' perceived abuse, health assessments and elder-reported measures of dignity in hospital quality metrics.