Pensioners' quality of life in social care houses.

BACKGROUND: Elderly people need special and complex dental care. They have the right to a dignified life and for the dental care. In elderly the need for social and family support grows. However, many seniors live their last stages of life in the Social Care Houses. Governmental institutions fail to provide full support to seniors since almost the entire psychosocial domain is neglected. Social Care Houses, despite having the word "home" in its name, are only institutions providing the patients with nursing care. The aim of the work was to study the quality of life and psychosocial status in residents of Social Care Houses. MATERIAL: The study enrolled 135 individuals aged from 66 to 87 years. RESULTS: It was found that the quality of life in residents of Social Care Houses was low and their psychosocial status was poor. Majority of the studied individuals did not like their life so far. They were overwhelmed by the feeling of tiredness, loneliness and fear about tomorrow. Despite feeling lonely the residents of Social Care Houses showed strong tendency towards isolation. Low psychical and physical activity influenced negatively the psychosocial status of the seniors. It seems that psychotherapists should be the staff members in the Social Care Houses. CONCLUSIONS: 1. The quality of pensioners' life in Social Care Houses does not offer happy existence to them. 2. The pensioners' psychosocial state is poor in Social Care Houses. 3. It seems that Social Care Houses should employ psychotherapists.

[Geriatric dentistry: dental needs, problems, and expectations of residents of care homes]. / Stomatologia geriatryczna - potrzeby, problemy i oczekiwania stomatologiczne pensjonariuszy domów pomocy spolecznej.

PURPOSE: Elderly people deserve respect and the right to receive appropriate medical assistance. This work was undertaken to determine the stomatognathic status of residents of Care Homes, condition of their dental prostheses, their main dental problems, expectations and needs, with emphasis on aspects of prosthetic treatment and psychosocial status. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Altogether, 135 residents of the Care Homes were studied. It was found that the stomatognathic status of the residents was disappointing. The residents had problems with hygiene, their prosthetic appliances were in a poor condition, and they also experinced problems when using the prostheses. Prosthetic problems were noted in almost every resident of Care Homes. RESULTS: Expectations as to dental care cannot be fulfilled without changing the national health care system. A relationship between satisfaction in life and extent of prosthetic needs, condition of prosthetic appliances, and problems with their use was found. A positive life history plays an important role in past dental care. CONCLUSION: The psychosocial status of residents of Care Homes was poor.