Main Life Concerns of Elderly in Urban Slums of Surat City, South Gujarat, India

Authors

  • Naresh Jain SMIMER, Surat
  • AB Pawar SMIMER, Surat
  • RK Bansal SMIMER, Surat

Keywords:

Life concerns, elderly, urban slums

Abstract

Background: The United Nations principles address the independence, participation, care, self-fulfillment, and dignity of older persons as an ensured priority.

Methodology: The study was conducted among elderly people (60 years and above) to know their main life concerns. The questions, validated before preparing questionnaire, were simple and largely close ended.

Results: Most people move into old age after a lifetime of poverty, poor nutrition, and healthcare, and years of hard physical labor. Loneliness was the most important life concern of the respondents in this study. Some studies have revealed this earlier. Livelihood; housing; and recreation and entertainment were another life concerns. The respondents were greatly concerned about the demolition threats to their illegal houses. More than 90 per cent of the respondents were concerned of health problems and seeking health care due to poverty and ill health. In public sector health care set up, long queues and difficulty in reaching physician is very cumbersome.

Conclusion & Recommendations: Governments need to focus their attention on better penetration of various social security schemes with special emphasis on poor elderly women. It is imperative to endow with the tailor-made recreational facilities like municipal parks, social clubs and drop-in-centers dedicated to elderly. There is a need to generate political will to understand health issues and life concerns of elderly. Special queue for elderly in health care facilities and geriatric clinics manned by the cadre of specialists/ geriatricians is the need of the hour.

References

Ageing Asia: A special report. Corporate India Nov 1-15, 2008; 1-17: 76-78.

World Health Organization, Population aging: a public health challenge. Fact Sheet No. 135, Revised September 1998.

Gupta MC, Mahajan BK. The textbook of Preventive & social Medicine. New Delhi: Jaypee Brother, 2nd ed, 1995. p620-23.

Novak M. Thinking about Ageing: A Critique of Liberal Social Gerontology. Age and Ageing; Nov.8:4. 1979. p.209-15.

Press Release WHO/65, 1 October 1998. Geneva: WHO.

Goel PK, Garg SK, Singh JV, Bhatnagar M., Copra H., Bajpai SK. Unmet needs of the elderly in a rural population of Meerut. Indian Journal of Community Medicine 2003; 28 (4):65-166.

Bhatia SPS, Swami HM, Thakur JS, Bhatia V. A study of Health problems and loneliness among the elderly in Chandigarh. Indian Journal of Community Medicine 2007; 32(4):255-257.

Pettigrew S, Roberts M. Addressing loneliness in later life. Aging Ment Health 2008 May; 12(3):302-9.

Kumar VS. Family life and Socio economic problems of the aged. Delhi: Ashish Publishing House, 1991.

Morgan, C. M. The attitudes and adjustments of recipients of old age assistance in upstate metropolitan New York. Archives of Psychology 1937; 30 (214).

Kartikeyan S, Pedhambkar BS, Jape MR. Social security the Global Scenario. Indian Journal of Occupational Health 1999; 42: 91-98.

Downloads

Published

2012-09-30

How to Cite

1.
Jain N, Pawar A, Bansal R. Main Life Concerns of Elderly in Urban Slums of Surat City, South Gujarat, India. Natl J Community Med [Internet]. 2012 Sep. 30 [cited 2024 Mar. 28];3(03):538-40. Available from: https://njcmindia.com/index.php/file/article/view/1760

Issue

Section

Original Research Articles