Assessment of Loneliness Among the Elderly in Selected Regions in Indonesia: Basis for the Mental Health Awareness Development Program
Keywords:
assessments, awareness program, elderly, loneliness, mental healthAbstract
Background: Loneliness is a mental health problem in many countries worldwide. Older people who live alone and are separated from their children, grandkids, and close caretakers are more likely to experience loneliness for a number of reasons. Programs that increase awareness of mental health difficulties, especially for older people, are vital because this danger exists in developing countries like Indonesia as well. Prior to the application of mental health nursing interventions, research on loneliness in older people is required.
Objective: The purpose of this study is to evaluate loneliness among older people and create program ideas for increasing mental health awareness that Indonesia can use.
Method: This study employed a descriptive-analytic approach, and the UCLA version 3 loneliness evaluation was used to gauge the loneliness of 257 senior respondents in Yogyakarta and Palembang. Older adults who met the following requirements were eligible to participate in this study: they had to be over 60, cooperative, willing to participate as research subjects, and not feel threatened by the gravity of answering the questionnaire. Elderly persons with disabilities, older adults with disorders, and older adults who encounter complaints during the research procedure that make it impossible for them to continue as respondents are the inclusion criteria in this study.
Result: Most respondents had low levels of loneliness (30.7%), fairly high levels (30%), moderate levels (21.8%), and high levels (17.5%). One alternative initiative for raising mental health awareness and helping lonely older adults is CERAHBY.
Conclusion: Based on the study's findings, the researcher suggests CERAHBY as an older mental health awareness program package that might be implemented in Indonesia.
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