Date of Award

12-4-2024

Degree Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Dr. Rubina Barolia

Second Advisor

Dr Laila Cassum

Third Advisor

Miss Yasmin Parpio

Department

School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan

Abstract

Background: There is scarce number of studies on malnutrition and frailty in the context of old age homes in Karachi, Pakistan, despite the growing recognition of these conditions as serious health concerns among older persons. Previous researches of Pakistan have primarily concentrated on hospital-based environments or populations living in the community, ignoring the distinct difficulties encountered by older adults who are housed in institutional care facilities. In order to improve the health and well-being of this vulnerable population, evidence based interventions and policy decisions must be informed by filling in this research gap.
Objective: This study was aimed to explore the prevalence and association between malnutrition and frailty among older adults residing in old age homes of Karachi, Pakistan.
Method: A cross-sectional research design was adopted and utilized with 160 participants from two old age homes of Karachi (42.5% from Edhi Old Homes & 57.5% from Sahara Village) where selected to collect data using convenient sampling technique. Data was collected using Mini Nutrition Statement & Clinical Frailty Test from 160 participants.
Findings: According to the results indicated that, 67.5% participants were malnourished, 32.5% were at risk of malnourishment while 75.6% participants were pre-frail and 21.3% were frail. A strong association was found between centre of residence and financial status (p = 0.00) and comorbidity (0.02). On the other hand, gender, province, and marital status were not significantly associated with malnourishment. Furthermore, significant association of frailty were as also found between centre of residence and frailty (0.03), education level (p = 0.000), vii malnourishment (p = .000) and financial status (p = 0.03). Gender and ethnicity were not strongly associated with frailty. ANOVA also showed that frailty and malnourishment are closely associated (0.00).
Conclusion: The results highlighted that malnourishment and frailty are strongly associated with financial status and education levels. To treat malnutrition in this population, it is necessary to not only increase the consumption of nutrient-rich introducing products but also to take into consideration the socio-demographic and health-related factors that can potentially lead to the development of malnutrition. These findings highlight the need of customized and targeted care and nutrition interventions to combat the risks of malnutrition and frailty in older adults.

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