Factors Affecting Quality of Life of the Elderly in Ibadan Metropolis, Oyo State Nigeria

Abstract

Quality of life is an important measure in the assessment of population psychosocial well being and health status. The Qol of elderly people has become relevant with the demographic shift towards an aging society. The objective of this study was to identify and assess the multifaceted factors influencing QoL of the elderly in Ibadan metropolis. A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted on two hundred and forty (240) selected elderly respondents using multistage simple random technique. A pre-tested semi-structured interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect data on the socio-demographic, socio-economic and housing indices of the respondents. The World Health Organisation Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used to assess the QoL of the respondents. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Pearson Coefficient correlation distribution. The mean age of the respondents was 69.7±8.1years, 53.3% were female, 61.7% were married and 59.6% had no formal education. Overall mean QoL was 57.4±11.2. Majority (83.3%) of the elderly had moderate, 10.8% had low and 5.8% had a high level of QoL. Education level, family size, income level and living status of the respondents were significantly (p-value < 0.05) related to QoL. It is recommended that individuals must change their mindset about the elderly, strengthen positive traditional ties. Government should make provisions for easy accessibility of funds for the elderly, banks and other financial organizations could be required to set aside a little token of their proceeds to assist elderly and pension administration should be radically implemented for speedy payment, easy and timely access to their retirement benefits. Government should declare "a state of emergency" on the provision of decent housing for the elderly and implement policies towards provision of basic amenities such as electricity, water, waste management and social security such as free health care for the elderly. It is also recommended that more research into the Qol predicaments of the elderly population be undertaken by the research community. Policy makers on the other hand can and should use such researches to contribute to policy development of the elderly.