Strengthening Active Aging through Older People’s Association and Economic Activity of the Older People in Nepal

Aging is a natural lifelong process ending in death. Many older people are living in poverty. Older people are generally considered dependent on others as they grow older. The purpose of this article is to explore the entrepreneurship activities of Nepalese older adults. Data for this study were collected from the project Help Age International (HAI) implemented in Nepal. Qualitative data observations and interviews were used to collect data. The findings of this study show the formation of the Older People’s Association (OPA) has supported many older people to participate outside the home in various social activities. Moreover, regular deposits through OPAs offer little help. OPAs support older people in their need of financial support to implement minor entrepreneurship. Older people who received support were pleased and were actively involved in their activities and also regularly deposited money in them. Subsequently, older people’s participation in social activities has increased and also helped to lower elderly abuse, loneliness, and depression. Local governments should promote such activities which will help with healthy aging.

Depression among elderly living in Briddashram (old age home)

Introduction: Depression is a common public health issue with the increasing life expectancy worldwide and depression is associated with morbidity as well as disability among the elderly. There are very few studies related with depression among elderly from developing countries. Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of depression and its correlates among the elderly living in Briddashram (old age home). Methods: This is a cross-sectional study carried out in 2012. Data were collected by face-to-face interview using short version of Geriatric Depression Scale. The data were analyzed using percentage, mean, simple correlation and regression. Results: The subjects (N = 185) were elderly aged 60 years and above living in Devghat area, Nepal. Mean age of the subjects was 73.67 (±3.23) years old and 51% were male. 94% elderly belong to Khas ethnicity. Nearly one third (31%) elderly were from nuclear family back ground, 25% were married, and only 18% elderly were literate. Majority of the elderly (93%) had health problems and self reported health shows 86% elderly reported their health fair. This study shows mean functional disability score was 2.53 (±2.05). Finding shows the prevalence of depression was 57.8%. Among them 46.7% had mild, 8.9% had moderate and 2.2% had severe depression. A statistically significant correlation was found between feelings of depression and age, sex, previous family type, ethnicity, feeling of loneliness and instrumental activities of daily living. Regression analysis shows that being women, feeling of loneliness and higher the dependency in IADL were predictors of depression. Conclusion: This study indicates that many elderly living in the Briddashram are suffering from depression. There should be some interruption from the concerned authorities so that depression can be reduced which will support to the well-being and quality of life of elderly.

Aging Trend and Situation in Nepal

Aging is a natural lifelong process until death. The proportions of the older population are increasing rapidly in Nepal too. There are 2.97 million older people in Nepal as of the 2021 census which is a 38.2% increase compared to the previous census of 2011. The proportion of the older population reached 10.21% of the total population of Nepal. During this decade, Nepal’s average population growth rate is 0.92% and the older population growth rate is 3.29% per year. On the other hand, Nepal’s total fertility is below replacement level, infant mortality is around 23 per thousand live births and average life expectancy is now around 71 years. The median age of Nepal is 25 years and the index of aging increased rapidly from 23.3 in 2011 to 36.7 in the 2021 census of Nepal. These indicators show aging is taking place rapidly and the caregiving burden may increase rapidly in the coming days due to the tendency of migration of the young population to other countries. In this context, the Nepal government needs to focus on how to manage the population and provide quality services and social security for the growing older people of Nepal.

Life style of patient before and after diagnosis of hypertension in Kathmandu

Hypertension is an important public health-challenge in the developing and the developed world alike. However, hospital-based studies on cardiovascular diseases including hypertension in a developing country like Nepal have been limited. Objective: The objective of the present study was to determine the life style of patients before and after diagnosis of hypertension. Methods: A total of 100 adult hypertensive patients over 30 years of age who were attending in medical out patients department within 6 month to 2 years after first diagnosis of hypertension in Shahid Gangalal National Heart Centre and Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, in Kathmandu, Nepal, in April 2009, using a descriptive research design. The data was collected by interview using a questionnaire consisting of a combination of structured and semistructured questions. The data was analyzed by using SPSS 11.5 version. Results: This study found the respondents’ knowledge regarding hypertension was poor. Regarding life style of hypertensive patients, majorities (90%) of them were non-vegetarian before diagnosis but after diagnosis of hypertension the percentage of non-vegetarian was reduced by 10%. Similarly, the reduction in consumption of meat, eggs, ghee and oil (mustard, sunflower) by hypertensive patients was statistically significant difference (p = 0.000) after the diagnosis of hypertension. Regarding soyabean oil consumption, additional salty food and amount of salt intake there was no statistical significant difference before and after the diagnosis of hypertension. Likewise, physical exercise and stress reduction activities performed by hypertensive patients and change in drinking alcohol and smoking was found to be statistically significant difference (p = 0.000) after the diagnosis of hypertension. Conclusion: The adverse consequences of hypertension can be reduced by modifying the life style. Therefore more focus should be given in increasing the awareness about hypertension by developing information, education and communication materials on hypertension and setting up hypertensive counseling clinic in each hospitals.

Social and Health Status of Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Nepal

span style="font-family:Verdana;">Background: Most developing countries are ageing at unprecedented rates, yet they are relatively under-studied regarding the demographic and health status of the older population. This in turn inhibits appropriate, positive societal responses. This study presents the socio-demographic and health status of older adults in Nepal. Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of structured interview data collected by the Central Department of Population Studies at Tribhuvan University (TU) via a cross-sectional survey of community-dwelling persons age 60+ in the Pharping area of Kathmandu. For this study, there were 1326 valid responses. Results: Respondents’ mean age was 69.92 years (sd = 7.82). The majority (70%) was illiterate. Nearly 3/5 of women were widowed (58.4%), which nearly doubles the male rate (31.8%). Over three-quarters of respondents (78.6%) were living with family members, far more than with spouse only (11.6%), alone (6.2%) or with others (3.6%). Only 9.2% of respondents received a pension, and over seventy percent of respondents (70.7%) were still working. About three-quarters (76.5%) of respondents had physical health problems;14.6% had some physical disability, and 52.6% self-reported a mental health problem. Statistically significant (p 0.01) gender differences were found for marital status, literacy, living arrangements, pensions, physical health problems, and mental health problems. Conclusions: Like most nations, Nepal is ageing rapidly. There are gender differences that can differentially affect the experiences of older men and women. Nepal should increase the quantity and quality of data describing its older population so it can continue to develop appropriate, effective social and health programs and services to reduce gender disparities and maximize elderly quality of life.

Living Arrangement of Older People: A Study of Community Living Elderly from Nepal

Background: Aging has caused changes in the structure of families that raises reflections on the sustainability of the traditional models of family care for older adults. The aim of this article is to analyze the situation of living arrangements of Nepalese older people. Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of structured interview data collected by the Central Department of Population Studies at Tribhuvan University (TU) via a cross-sectional survey of community-dwelling persons aged 60+ in the Pharping area of Kathmandu. For this study, there were 1326 valid responses. Results: Findings show over four-fifths of respondents (81.3%) were living with family members, far more than with a spouse only (11.6%), alone (6.2%), and others (0.9%). The proportion of Populace residing alone tends to increase with the increase in age of respondents;more widowers tend to live alone compared to those in marital unions;more elderly males without living children tend to live alone compared to those who have at least one living child. The sex of the respondents, marital status, ethnicity, income situation, and feeling of insecurity have significant differences in the living arrangement of older people in this study. Conclusion: Traditionally, Nepalese older adults are contented to live with their family members. The government of Nepal should promote the traditional living arrangements of older people through some incentives providing for family members taking care of their senior citizens.

Covid-19 and Immunity in the Elderly

Population ageing is an issue of worldwide importance.People are living longer due to advances in education,technology,medicine,food distribution,and public health.While the COVID-19 pandemic has significant global impacts,in many countries the elderlyface threats and challenges that are unique and disproportionately severe.One such threat is that aging results in a decline in immune function,meaning elderly bodies respond more slowly and less effectively to external threats like COVID-19.Responses at individual,family,community and societal levels should take into account the heightened vulnerability of older adults during this pandemic.