Abstract
The rising number of people in the geriatric population in Bangladesh appears as an emerging challenge due to the increased lifespan. The ageing population by 2050 may adversely affect the existing health care system. To understand the factors affecting the geriatric health and health-seeking behavior of the elderly in Bangladesh, a cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary level hospital, Dhaka.The result shows that most of the respondents (87.3%) do not have any source of income and are dependent on children/family members. Very few of the caregivers of the respondents are aware of or trained in elderly health care by any means. 80% of the respondents had delayed in seeking health service since the first onset of disease. The majority of the respondents delayed or did not take needed care due to their inability to bear the cost of treatment (68.2%), poor health care service (59.6%), and reluctance towards seeking medical help (60.9%). The majority (89.6%) of the respondents find the existing health service in the geriatric unit unsatisfactory. The study confirms that changing family structure, quality of the relationship, financial stresses, loss of spouse, physical changes of aging and psychological state of mind also have a significant impact on their health conditions and health-seeking behavior. The study suggests that addressing geriatric care, more initiatives i.e. elderly welfare schemes with proper distribution, community health care supports, awareness and health campaigns involving media and newspaper, policy level projects and reinforcement should be taken to reduce the vulnerability of elderly in Bangladesh.
Presenters
Saiyedatun NesaJoint Registrar, Department of cooperatives, Rural development and cooperative division. Government of Bangladesh, Dhaka zila, Bangladesh
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Social and Cultural Perspectives on Aging
KEYWORDS
GARIATRIC HEALTH, HEALTH SEEKING BEHAVIOR, SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS, BANGLADESH
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