Factors Influencing Quality of Life of Elders in Chiang Khwan District, Roi-Et Province, Thailand

Abstract

This descriptive research was the study about general population attributes in elders in Chiang Khwan district, Roi-Et province, Thailand:  basic needs of life, social and environmental factors, health factors towards the level of quality of life in 400 elders, 60 years old and above having their names registered at Chiang Khwan district and currently living in Chiang Khwan district. The research was conducted by using systematic random sampling and face-to-face questionnaire with a reliability value of 0.80. The period of data collection was from June – July 2010. Data analysis employed frequency, percentage, means, standard deviation, as well as chi-square test to investigate the relationship among studied variables. The research result showed that there were more females (60%) than males (40%) with an average age of 68 years. The minimum age was 60 years and the maximum age 91 years. 60.2 percent of the samples were married. Their average income was 3,221.75 baht per month. 56.2 percent were working in the agricultural sector. Regarding food, 56.0 percent of them still ate uncooked food. 93.0 percent of them were living in stable houses built for more than 5 years ago. For their clothing, 84.0 percent of them had sufficient clothes to wear for each season. For healthcare, 81.5 percent of them have to received their initial treatment at available health station. 84.5 percent were satisfied with the service provided by the public health officers. 88.5 percent of them caught up news on television. 62.0 percent were involved in community activities during important religious ceremonies. As for health aspect, 74.5 percent were not sick and 66.2 percent had no personal inifrmity. Regarding the level of life quality, physical and mental aspects were considered normal while social and environmental aspects were good. The overall level of life quality was good. With statistical significance at 0.05, it was  found that factors influencing elders’ quality of life were gender (p-value = 0.050), age (p-value = 0.019), still working (p-value = 0.003), suitability of work with their ages (p-value = 0.022), clothing (p-value = 0.001), healthcare (p-value = 0.001), general health (p-value = 0.001); involvement in the community (p-value = 0.001). In the future, there should be more studies on the impact of elders’ lifestyle on their health conditions, both physical and mental aspects, and on important diseases that may affect elders.