Abstract
Purpose
The study estimated the prevalence and determinants of depression among older adults with chronic illness.
Methods
A cross-sectional descriptive survey was done among 337 hospitalized older adults with chronic illness during February 2019–2020 at a selected tertiary care hospital, Rishikesh, India using total enumerative sampling by Geriatric Depression Scale.
Results
Among hospitalized older adults, depressive symptoms (80%) were highly prevalent and closely linked to an extended hospital stay [odds ratio = 2.106; 95% confidence interval [CI]: (1.30–3.411)], life events [odds ratio = 3.41; 95% CI: (1.48–7.88)], and multiple chronicity [odds ratio = 2.44; 95% CI: (1.49–3.98)].
Implications
This study demands liaison psychiatric nurses deployed at Indian tertiary care hospitals who can efficiently conduct screening and management of depression among older adults with chronic illness.