The Relationship Between their Risks of Falling and Functional Independence Levels of Elders Living at Home

Abstract

Background: The increase in the elderly population is accompanied by several changes and problems associated with old age. Objective: This study aims to identify the relationship between the risks of falling and functional independence levels of elders living at home. Methods: A total of 600 elders aged 65 years or above registered to 12 family health centers located in a city center in the Central Anatolian Region of Turkey participated in the research. A personal information form, the Modified Barthel Index, and the Falls Behavioral Scale for the Elderly were used as the data collection tools in the research. By using the Statistical Package for Social Science 22.0, the collected data were evaluated with descriptive tests, arithmetic means, the Mann-Whitney U test, the Kruskal-Wallis H test, the Pearson correlation analysis, and the linear regression analysis. Results: It was found that the elderly had a mean age of 72.0±5.99 years, and 0.8% of them were severely dependent, whilst 79.3% of them were fully independent. Furthermore, it was identified that 30.3% of the elderly had a history of falling in the previous year. The correlation between the mean scores obtained by the elders from the Modified Barthel Index and Falls Behavioral Scale for the Elderly was not statistically significant (p>0.05). Conclusion: Even if there was no statistically significant relationship between the functional independence levels of elderly living at home and their risks of falling, advanced age increased functional dependence and decreased risky behaviors leading to falls.