Pamella Cristina de Carvalho Lucas
University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
Title: Care needs among the elderly in the city of São Paulo, Brazil - SABE study (health, well-being and aging)
Biography
Biography: Pamella Cristina de Carvalho Lucas
Abstract
The elderly population in Brazil is estimated at 29.4 million (≥ 60 years), by the year 2060 may reach 73 million people. In the city of São Paulo, the elderly contingent has already reached the 1.7 million mark. The present study is part of SABE (Health, Well-being and Aging), a longitudinal study of multiple cohorts developed to trace the living and health conditions of the elderly in São Paulo. The objective was to describe how are the elderly residents in the city of São Paulo regarding the difficulties to perform activities of daily living. Participants in the fourth cohort (n = 1236), conducted in 2017, were 57.1% female and 42.9% male. The average age was 74.3 years. Regarding activities of daily living, 46% of participants reported difficulties for instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), which ultimately tell about the possibility of the elderly living alone; and 24% of them had difficulties for basic activities of daily living (ADL), requiring caregivers. 60% of the elderly reported multimorbidity, with osteoarticular disease being the second most prevalent (33.8%). 28.1% were widowed, 6.2% single and 17.2% lived alone; conditions that predict greater need for assistance, not always being covered by families and services. In an accelerated context of population aging, there are important challenges for Brazilian public policies that need to adapt to the new and growing social and health demands in order to meet the needs of the elderly population.