title: Activities of daily living, quality of life, social support and depression levels of elderly individuals in Turkish society.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine activities of daily living, quality of life, social support and depression levels of elderly individuals and the factors affecting each of these items.
  
  
  METHODS
  The cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2009 to June 2012 in Edirne, Turkey, and included elderly individuals over 60 years of age. Data was collected using a survey form, the Katz Activities of Daily Living Scale, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the European Quality of Life-5 Dimensions scale and the Geriatric Depression Scale. Data was analysed using Spearman's correlation analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 912 subjects in the study, 509(55.8%) were females and 402(44.2%) were males, with an overall mean age of 68.05 ± 6.6 years (range: 60-94 years). Besides, 644(70.6%) of the subjects were married and 595(65.2%) were living with their spouse. The levels of social support and activities of daily living of elderly individuals with a high quality of life were higher, and their levels of depression were lower (p<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Older age, chronic health problems and polypharmacy should be taken into account when planning healthcare services for the elderly to ensure that they maintain a better quality of life.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Nursing, Trakya University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Edirne, Turkey.
authors.forename: Serap
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Unsar
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Nursing, Trakya University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Edirne, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ilknur
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Dindar
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Nursing, Trakya University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Edirne, Turkey.
authors.forename: Seda
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kurt
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014421:Turkey
keywords: Activities of daily living, Elderly, Geriatric depression, Social support, Quality of life.