Malnutrition Risk and Its Association with Functional, Cognitive and Psychological Status among Palestinian Elderly in Long-Term Care Facilities

Abstract

Malnutrition Risk and Its Association with Functional, Cognitive and Psychological Status among Palestinian Elderly in Long-Term Care Facilities

Manal Badrasawi 1, Alaa Jaradat 1, Razan Lahalyah 1, Mohamed Khodour 2 & Zaheera Khodour1 1 Nutrition and Health research group, Healthy and therapeutic nutrition program, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Palestine Poly technic University, Hebron, Palestine 2 Nursing program, Ibn Sina collage for health sciences, Palestine Ministry of Health, Nablus, Palestine Older people often suffer from psychological, functional and health related diseases due to environmental living conditions. Literature has documented the relationship between malnutrition in institutionalized older people and their health outcome, quality of life, functional and cognitive status. Yet, there is a need for such research in the Palestinian context. Thus, this study aimed to examine the relationship between the risk of malnutrition and the cognitive, functional and psychological status of older people living in long-term care facilities in Palestine. The study employed the quantitative cross-sectional approach in which surveys were used to collect data from 105 residents in eight nursing homes in six different cities in West Bank, Palestine. The assessment of the older people’s nutritional status was obtained using anthropometric measurement, meal patterns, and malnutrition risk; the cognitive function using the validated Arabic version of mini mental status examination; the functional status using the ADL; and the psychological status using the Arabic version of geriatric depression scale. A total of 99 (45.5%) men and (54.5%) women with mean age (70.7+8.6) years old were included in the final data analysis. The results revealed that moderate malnutrition risk found in 47% and high malnutrition risk found in 23%. The variables associated with malnutrition risk were being under weight, gender, depression, and cognitive function, p<0.05 using chi square test. However, the association was not significant for number of meals and hours of overnight fasting, p>.05. Significant differences in the dependency level mean scores among the older people with high risk of malnutrition were found using one way ANOVA test, p<0.05. In conclusion, risk of malnutrition was common among the study sample, and it was associated with their cognitive, psychological and functional status. Hence, there is a need to provide the elderly people living in long-term care facilities with health programs to enhance their overall health and decrease the level of dependency as well.