An Assessment of Functional Status of the Elderly in an ?Institution

J Korean Neurol Assoc > Volume 12(4); 1994 > Article

Journal of the Korean Neurological Association 1994;12(4): 647-651.

어느 시설 노인들의 기능 상태 평가

박종한, 임정근,김동원

계명대학교 정신과, 신경과, 신경외과.

An Assessment of Functional Status of the Elderly in an ?Institution

Jong Han Park, M.D., Jeong Geun Lim, M.D., Dong Won Kim, M.D.

Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Neurosurgery

Abstract

It is supposed in Korea that institutional care for the elderly would increase while their home care would decrease. Assessment of the functional status is of much importance for effective caregiving for the institutionalized people. The functional status was evaluated in 89 elderly residents of an institution in Taegu, using the Korean version of the mini-mental state examination, the Blessed Dementia Rating Scale, the Barthel Activities of Daily Living, and the Motoricity Index. Vision and hearing were also examined. Based on scores of the Korean version of mini-mental state examination, 45% were found to have definite cognitive impairment and further 25% to have questionable cognitive impairment. About 35% of the subjects possibly had mild or more severe dementia on the Blessed Dementia Rating Scale. Fifty-seven percent had impairment in activities of daily living, and 66% had impairment in motor power. Sixteen percent and 20% had poor vision and hearing difficulty, respectively, to the degree of impairment in daily activities. These findings indicate that more than half of elderly people in institutional care may need either partial or total help from others.