Depression among senior citizens at selected community and old age home: A comparative approach

Depression in the elderly has not been studied intensively. It is often masked by organic disease. There is a need for improvement in the identification of depression among the elderly as it is a life-threatening condition.

To determine the level of depression among senior citizens at community and old age home.

Comparative Research design was adopted for the study. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling technique, and 60 senior citizens were taken for the study, out of which 30 senior citizens were chosen from old age home, 30 from community in Madurai district. Data collection was done for a period of 1 month. Tool used for this study was Geriatric Depression Scale. Data collection was done by interview method.

There was a significant difference in the level of depression between elderly residing in community and old age home.

Depression scores were higher in People residing in Old age home than residing in Community with family members. As the age increases, depression may increase due to lack of support from family, isolation, loneliness and lack of interaction.