Knowledge, Attitude and Practices about the Elderly Care and Elderly Abuse among the Medical and Dental Students

Abstract

Background: One of the leading causes of mortality in old age is chronic conditions such as heart disease,

stroke, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease so people leave their elderly in hospital alone, this decrease

their enthusiasm in healthy living moreover many times as a medical facility, we to forgets about how to

take care and sympathize old age problem. We forget it’s not just the disease that is killing them but sense of

negligence that making their life hollow.

Aim: To study the knowledge, attitude and practice related to elderly care and their insecurities among

MBBS students of 2019 and BDS students 2019 batch

Objective: To assess the level of knowledge about elderly care and problems faced by them.

To assess attitude of students towards the geriatric population.

To assess the practice related to prevention elderly abuse.

Result: Elderly abuse is at a great high in our society with majority of the abuse done by their own children.

Highest form of abuse was neglect (45.64%). 59.21% of elderly people didn’t receive any help from anyone.

Elderly people are considered a huge burden to family for majority of students (76.32%).

Conclusions: it is very important that awareness regarding the elderly care and elderly abuse should be

spread at the primary level i.e. in schools, and students must be encouraged to inculcate the knowledge and

respect towards the elderly care, and the government should enforce proper laws and penalties for the same.