THE MENTAL HEALTH OF ELDERLY IN CHAIYAPHUM PROVINCE CASE STUDY: NAPHAI SUB-DISTRICT, MUANG CHAIYAPHUM DISTRICT, CHAIYAPHUM PROVINCE

Abstract

This descriptive research aims to: 1) study the mental health of the elderly, 2) study the mental health of the elderly, and 3) to study factors that affect mental health in the elderly. The 400 samples used in this study were males and females aged more than 60 years in Naphai sub district, Muang Chaiyaphum district, Chaiyaphum province and during August and December 2557. The tools was a questionnaire survey has two parts 1) general information of the elderly and 2) the test of mental health indicators for Thailand by the Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health. Analyzed data using descriptive statistics i.e. percentage, mean. The inferential statistics to analyze the relationship and effected between personal factors and mental health indicators were used Chi-square method and Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis.

The results showed that: The most of mental health levels of elderly in lower than the general citizen 74.00%. The factors associated with the depression (P <0.05) were                  1) personal factors i.e. sex, age, marital status and education, 2) family and economic factors i.e. average income per month, source of income, enough of income and 3) health factors i.e. congenital disease. The factors that effect of the depression in the elderly with statistically significant i.e. age, main source of income, congenital disease and a amicable relationship family with That could predict depression in elderly 24.20 percent statistically significant (P <0.001).