Quality of life and Family Functioning in Old person with Chronic Diseases

Abstract

Given the increase in life expectancy in Mexico, there will be more elderly people with chronic diseases that will affect the patient and the family system, which may deteriorate their quality of life. The objective of the present study was to determine the relationship between quality of life and family functioning in elderly people with chronic diseases. The study was a non-experimental correlational study that included 177 elderly people from the State of Mexico, with an age range of 60 to 96 years (M=68.4). The SF-36 instrument was used to assess quality of life and the EFF instrument to assess family functionality. Significant correlations were obtained between quality of life and family functioning. The quality of life dimensions physical function, physical role, and emotional role correlated positively with the family functioning factors functional affective involvement, functional communication pattern, problem solving, and behavioral control patterns. Negative correlations were of the three quality of life factors already mentioned with dysfunctional affective involvement. In addition, chronic pain and social function had negative correlations with functional affective involvement and problem solving. It is concluded that elderly people with chronic diseases will have a better quality of life with good family functioning, but with chronic pain there may be a tendency for these relationships to deteriorate and for social function to decrease.