Elderly people worried about maintaining social life: Survey

Most of the elderly people in the country are worried about maintaining their social life and meeting their everyday needs, while physical health is a major concern for only 10 per cent of them, according to a recent survey.

For around 66 per cent of elderly parents, social life and daily needs are the most challenging concerns, the survey conducted by IVH SeniorCare, in partnership with Wellness Health and You (Age Friendly India), stated.

The survey, titled "Jug Jug Jiyenge", was conducted to understand the perspective of the elderly people and their children on the needs of the elders living alone.

It highlights how children fail to understand the needs of their elderly parents. It reveals that for 67 per cent of the children living away, the health of their parents is the primary concern and only 18 per cent are worried about their parent's social life and everyday needs.

"The disparity in the thinking of the children living away from home and their elderly parents raises many red flags. While the children are right to worry about the physical health of their elderly parents, the parents' key concerns about missing out on social life and difficulty in meeting their everyday needs highlight the underlying mental health issues.

"The children fail to understand that health is not merely the physical health. Instead, it is a state of physical and mental wellbeing. Living a socially secluded life in the absence of their children often predisposes the elders to a feeling of loneliness, which can later transform into depression," Dr G S Grewal, elder-care specialist and consultant, Max Hospital and chairman, Wellness Health and You, said.

Dr Grewal is also the secretary of the Delhi Medical Association (DMA).

The sample size of the survey was 1,000 senior citizens each from Delhi NCR, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Karnataka, and their children who were living away from them for at least five years.

The data was collected through face-to-face interviews with the elders living alone and email or telephonic interviews with their children. The results of the survey were obtained by comparative evaluation.

"The most surprising finding was that adults who need to socialise or indulge in some recreational activity after five days of work a week could not imagine their parents socialising. Ninety-six per cent of the children imagined their parents to be homebound.

"However, 79 per cent of the senior citizens want to be out of home, socialising with friends and relatives. The introduction of the nuclear family structure and migration of children have further substantiated the feeling. It is important that children engage in regular conversations with their parents to have an insight into their needs, rather than just relying on assumptions," said Swadeep Srivastava, founder and chief belief officer, IVH SeniorCare.