Exploration of the experiences of abuse in the elderly living in nursing homes: a qualitative content analysis

Background: By WHO definition, abuse towards the elderly is a single or successive actions or lack of proper functioning resulting in harm, pain, distress, anxiety and discomfort, that occurs physically, psychologically, sexually, financially or by negligence. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of abuse in the elderly living in the nursing homes of Guilan province in the north of Iran.Materials and Methods: This study was a qualitative study with a conventional content analysis approach on the elderly living in the nursing homes of Guilan. Sampling was conducted by purposive method, and data were collected by semi-structured interviews until reaching information overload. The data were analyzed using the proposed steps of Granneheim and Lundman, and the research accuracy and strength were evaluated based on Guba and Lincoln criteria.Results: The results of 21 interviews included three main categories and seven subcategories were as follows: Mental disturbance (persistent concerns, accompanying concerns)/ communicative disruption (gradual forgetfulness, restricted communication)/ physical and emotional negligence (perceived violence, feeling of failure, bitter psychological experience).Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate that the evolution of the role of the family, the client s crises, psychological stresses of modern life, and so on, have weakened the social base of the elderly, and led to a abuse towards the elderly by their family members. Therefore, taking proper measures is necessary for promoting reverence and not abusing towards the elderly considering the importance of this valuable stratum in our culture and increasing the aged people in Iran.

کلیدواژه ها:

Abuse ، Elderly ، Quality research ، Content analysis