Well-being and psychosocial activities in nursing homes

Background. Assessment and self-assessment frequently differ, e.g. in psychosomatic disorders and complaints. At the same time the prevalence of corresponding disorders in old age is high. Objective. This study investigated psychosocial factors from the perspective of nursing home residents and compared this self-assessment with data collected in other scientific studies with assessments by nursing home staff. The aim was to develop specific recommendations for the nursing home sector. Meterials and methods. In this cross-sectional pilot study 256 nursing home residents (average age 81 +/- 10.3 years, 69 % female, 31 % male) were questioned about their physical, psychological and social activities and well-being in semistructured anonymous interviews. Psychological screening tests were simultaneously implemented to assess symptoms of depression and dementia using the short form of the geriatric depression scale (GDS-K) and the mini mental status test (MMST). Results. The results showed that 44.6 % of the residents had symptoms of depression and 76.1 % revealed signs of development of dementia. More than half assessed their physical health as good to very good. According to comparable studies nursing staff assessed persistent pain in 20.7 % of all nursing home residents while personal interviews with the residents showed that persistent pain (39.8 %) was almost twice as frequent. Life satisfaction showed a significant correlation with the following items from the self-assessment: participation in nursing home activities (r = 0.171, p = 0.008), mobility (r = -0.131; p = 0.045), emotional activity (r = 0.136, p = 0.038), subjectively experienced physical health (r = -0.420, p < 0.001) and persistent pain (r = -0.178, p = 0.006). Life satisfaction correlated highly significantly with symptoms of depression (r = -0.617, p < 0.001) and cognitive performance (r = 0.251, p = 0.001). Conclusion. The findings of this study encourage further research on the characteristic features of satisfied residents and (psycho)therapeutic support in order to promote factors for well-being and a positive quality of life in nursing homes.