Nutritional status and clinical health conditions of elderly people in public home care

Nutritional status and clinical health conditions of elderly people

Abstract

The assessment of an elderly person who needs home care in Primary Health Care considers their clinical condition, degree of functional loss and dependence to carry out activities of daily living. The objective of this study was to evaluate the nutritional status and clinical conditions of community-dwelling elderly in a municipality of Rio Grande do Norte. This is a cross-sectional, observational and descriptive study. Elderly men and women who were bedridden at home and monitored by Primary Health Care were included. Data collection was performed at home, through interviews and anthropometric measurements. The study included 33 elderly people, with a mean of 82.9 ± 10.3 years and prevalence of females (63.6%), illiteracy (51.5%), low socioeconomic status (69.7%), malnutrition (69.7%), deficit in lean mass (69.7%), long time in bedridden condition (45.5%), polypharmacy (36.4%), caregiver dependence (100%) and low contact with a multidisciplinary health      team (87.1%). There was a serious impairment of the nutritional status and clinical conditions of the bedridden elderly. The results of this study can help plan actions by home care to improve the clinical condition of the elderly assisted.