Quality Of Life and Mental Health of Elderly in Meghalaya, India
By Grace M. BasanShrieh
The Quality of Life and Mental Health status of 476 elderly persons in rural and urban Meghalaya state in India were assessed and their relationship to area of residence, gender, marital status, education, occupation, and type of family examined during 2018-19. The World Health Organization Quality of Life- BREF (WHOQOL, 1998) and Mental Health Inventory-18 (Veit & Ware, 1983) were used during household interviews with men and women elders who cooperated well. High scores were obtained for all the facets in the 2 questionnaires. Overall, the quality of life was found to be good despite various drawbacks and constraints in the State. Apparently the unique matrilineal family pattern and the Khasi Culture seems responsible for the good perception and the strong social relationships seem to help maintain high quality of life and psychological health, in the presence of inevitable physical discomforts and chronic morbidity. Quality of life and mental health were strongly correlated. Similar studies in other Indian states and effective elderly care services are recommended.