This study was conducted to collect the baseline data of physical health status and nursing needs of the elderly for developing an educational program for nursing professionals. The data was collected from 287 people who were 65 years old or older belonging to a selected 8 out of the 39 welfare centers in Pusan during the period from February 25 to November 30, 1996. Socio-demographic characteristics, frequency of hospitalization, and the prevalence of chronic illnesses were measured to assess the physical health status of the center's elderly admitted to the hospital during the period of data collection. The 5-point Likert-type scale composed of 20 items was used. The data was analyzed with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Program (SPSS PC+). The results were summarized as follows : 1. The proportion of elderly subjects with chronic illnesses was 73.6%. Among 6 types of chronic illnesses, hypertension was the most prevalent(23.7%), cardiovascular disease was the second(18.1%), gastrointestinal disease the third(17.1%), musculosskeletal disease the fourth(12.9%), liver and biliary disease the fifth(12.5%), and diabetes the sixth. 2. The average score of the subjects' health status was 3.649 on the 5-point Likert scale. Among the 6 factors related to physical health, personal hygiene was the strongest factor(4.612) ; elimination was the second(4.491) ; sensation the third(4.369), outside activity the fourth(3.675), digestion the fifth(3.331), and sexual life the sixth. 3. Gender, marital status, religion, educational level, family structure, living arrangements, and perceived health status were significantly related to the elderly's physical health status. 4. Among the nursing needs of the elderly, emotional support and care was the strongest need(74.2%) ; physical therapy was the second(73.2%) ; education about diease control the third(64.8%) ; medication the fourth(63.8%) ; and the range of motion exercise the fourth(61.0%).
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