Seniors who neglect themselves, risking their own health and safety, tend to be individuals with limited social networks and little social engagement, according to a study by Rush University Medical Center.
The study, currently appearing online in the medical journal Gerontology, is the largest epidemiological study to date examining a wide range of sociodemographic, health-related and psychosocial characteristics associated with elder self-neglect.
"We need to better understand elder self-neglect - who is at risk and why - so that we can find solutions and establish appropriate policies," said Dr. Xinqi Dong, a researcher and geriatrician at Rush University Medical Center and the study's lead author. "This is particularly important because reports of self-neglect to social service agencies are rising.
"Moreover, as our aging population is rapidly increasing in size, elder self-neglect will likely become an even more pervasive public health issue."
The study was based on records drawn from the Chicago Health and Aging Project, a longitudinal epidemiological study of a community-dwelling population of 9,056 individuals 65 years of age and older who live in three communities on Chicago's South side.
Over the 12-year course of this population-based study, 1,812 of these seniors, or 20 percent, were reported to the Chicago Department of Aging because of concern about suspected self-neglect.
Elder self-neglect is defined by the National Centers on Elder Abuse as "the behavior of an elderly person that threatens his/her own health and safety." It generally manifests as "a refusal or failure by the person to provide himself/herself with adequate food, water, clothing, shelter, personal hygiene, medication and safety precautions."