The Filipino older person poses a great economic challenge as their productivity declines (Philippine Country Report, 2014). There is an urgent demand for commitment, action, and research to assess and respond to the various needs of this population group.
The Commission on Philippine Human Rights in 2014 documented a total of 760 human rights violation cases involving victim aged 60 and above (Co, 2014). There is a range of 3.2 to 27.5% elder abuse reported by the general public, of which the adult children are the main perpetrators. The types of abuse range from physical and verbal abuse, ridicule and discrimination, the dependence of younger family members’ in the older person’s meager financial savings and negligence.
The purpose of this research was to assess the HEARTS of older persons in the Philippines. An Acronym used for H-Health, EA- Experience of Abuse, R-Resilience, T-Treatment, and S-Safety. The researchers aimed to identify interventions that will enhance health and experience elder abuse in an urban city in the Philippines. Results of this research could benefit older persons towards the comprehensive, person-centered, efficient, and effective delivery of nursing care that is responsive to their needs.
Methods:
The study explored the HEARTS of older persons through a descriptive survey quantitative research using the PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) Questionnaire that determined the health status and the EASI (Elder Abuse Suspicion Index) Questionnaire that determined the experience of abuse. Both standardized questionnaires are translated and back-translated into Filipino.
Patient-reported outcomes (PRO) are questionnaire measures of patients’ symptoms, functioning, and health-related quality of life. EASI or Elder Abuse Suspicion Index is a tool that helps identify and report elder abuse, including Physical abuse, Sexual abuse, Emotional or Psychological abuse, Abandonment, Financial abuse and exploitation, Neglect, and Self- Neglect.
The research question was whether experiencing multiple major health events diminishes rates of resilience. A number of studies linked resilience in older age to the availability of social networks, social support, integration, and connectedness within the community. Greater social connectedness is associated with improved resilience. Resilience may be latent characteristic in some individuals but will only manifest itself when they experience adversity. For, older people that adversity may have been lifelong, in the case for example of a disability, maybe a single life event, for example, the bereavement of a close friend, spouse or other family member or maybe a long-term adversity experienced in later life, for example, the development or diagnosis of a chronic illness. Health-related mental resilience is different from physical resilience or financial resilience. (Gallacher et al, 2012). For this study, we used resilience as “health-related mental resilience”.
Results:
The scores of health and abuse correlation matrix show a correlation coefficient of 0.461 between the abuse score and the overall health score. The correlation coefficient for physical health is -0.307, for anxiety, is -0.324, for depression is -0.429 and for fatigue is -0.429. The p-value of physical health is 0.006, anxiety is 0.003, depression and fatigue are 0. The over-all p-value score is 0 and is significant at the set 0.05 level for the 2-tailed test. Findings showed the experience of abuse and health on the other hand yield significant p-values of less than 0.05. All of the scores for health has a negative moderate correlation. This would mean that as exposure to abuse decreases, the health of the respondent’s increases.
In general, older adults have less physical strength and they are less able to defend themselves from physical abuse. The most obvious signs of physical abuse are falls, bruises, broken bones, burns, head injuries or injuries to the mouth. This would affect their physical and mental health status.
Conclusion:
The study gave evidence that Filipino older persons are doing all that they can to get their basic necessities and medical needs for themselves. However, the study recommends that the Philippine government look into the welfare of Filipino older persons to safeguard their health and well-being.
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