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Lack of Social Engagement Is a Risk Factor
for Self-Neglect in Older Adults
Twenty
Percent of Seniors in Chicago reported to
Social Service Agencies because of concern
about suspected Self-Neglect
Newswise — Seniors who neglect themselves, risking their
own health and safety, tend to be
individuals with limited social networks and
little social engagement, according to a
study by Rush University Medical Center.
The study, currently appearing online in the medical
journal Gerontology, is the largest
epidemiological study to date examining a
wide range of sociodemographic,
health-related and psychosocial
characteristics associated with elder
self-neglect.
"We need to better understand elder self-neglect – who is
at risk and why – so that we can find
solutions and establish appropriate
policies," said Dr. Xinqi Dong, a researcher
and geriatrician at Rush University Medical
Center and the study’s lead author.
"This is
particularly important because reports of
self-neglect to social service agencies are
rising.
"Moreover, as our aging population is rapidly increasing in
size, elder self-neglect will likely become
an even more pervasive public health issue."
The study was based on records drawn from the Chicago
Health and Aging Project, a longitudinal
epidemiological study of a
community-dwelling population of 9,056
individuals 65 years of age and older who
live in three communities on Chicago’s South
side.
Over the 12-year course of this population-based study,
1,812 of these seniors, or 20 percent, were
reported to the Chicago Department of Aging
because of concern about suspected
self-neglect.
Elder self-neglect is defined by the National Centers on
Elder Abuse as "the behavior of an elderly
person that threatens his/her own health and
safety." It generally manifests as "a
refusal or failure by the person to provide
himself/herself with adequate food, water,
clothing, shelter, personal hygiene,
medication and safety precautions."
Twice as many women as men and more than seven times the
number of African Americans as whites were
reported for self-neglect. Those reported,
compared with those not reported, tended to
be over the age of 80 and have a lower
socioeconomic status. The individuals also
tended to have nutritional deficiencies,
medical conditions and cognitive, physical
and psychological deficits.
However, independent of all these factors, lower levels of
social well-being – specifically, limited
social networks and little social engagement
– were major risk factors for self-neglect.
The study has important implications for health and social
service professionals, Dong said.
"Professionals who work with the elderly need to be mindful
not just of their patients’ health profile,
but also of their social well-being, a
factor that may put them at risk of
self-neglect," Dong said. "With social
services being cut, and community and city
resources lacking to help seniors, the
problems of isolation can only grow worse."
Dong will be testifying before the City Council of Chicago
on November 13 in support of a resolution
seeking to identify measures to address the
problem of elder self-neglect. The
resolution has been submitted by Alderman
Emma Mitts of the 37th Ward and is supported
by 29 other Chicago aldermen.
Other researchers involved in the study were Dr. Denis
Evans at Rush and Dr. Melissa Simon at
Northwestern University.
The study was supported by the National Institute on Aging,
a Paul B. Beeson Career Development Award in
Aging, The Starr Foundation, the John A.
Hartford Foundation and The Atlantic
Philanthropies.
Rush University Medical Center includes a 674-bed (staffed) hospital; the
Johnston R. Bowman Health Center; and Rush
University (Rush Medical College, College of
Nursing, College of Health Sciences and the
Graduate College).
Rush is currently constructing a 14-floor,
806,000-square-foot hospital building at the
corner of Ashland Avenue and Congress
Parkway. The new hospital, scheduled to open
in 2012, is the centerpiece of a $1-billion,
10-year campus redevelopment plan called the
Rush Transformation, which also includes a
new orthopedics building (to open in Fall
2009), a new parking garage and central
power plant completed in June 2009,
renovations of selected existing buildings
and demolition of obsolete buildings. The
new hospital is being designed and built to
conserve energy and water, reduce waste and
use sustainable building materials. Rush is
seeking Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design (LEED) gold
certification from the U.S. Green Building
Council. It will be the first full-service
“green” hospital in Chicago.
Rush’s mission is to provide the best possible care for our
patients. Educating tomorrow’s health care
professional, researching new and more
advanced treatment options, transforming our
facilities and investing in new
technologies—all are undertaken with the
drive to improve patient care now, and for
the future.
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