Influence of living situation on vulnerable elderly: Focus on nutritional status

OBJECTIVES: We compared the nutritional status of elderly people living in two different settings (shared-housing arrangements and home-living arrangements). DESIGN: For this secondary analysis, a cross-sectional study was performed. SETTING: For the home-living setting, home-dwelling elderly people from Hamburg, Germany who were participants in a prior study were included. For the shared-housing arrangements (SHA) setting, we used baseline data from the WGQual Study. PARTICIPANTS: The sample from the home-living setting comprised patients who were discharged from a geriatric rehabilitation clinic within the six months prior to data collection. The sample from the shared-housing arrangements comprised all residents that lived in SHAs. MEASUREMENTS: Nutritional status was examined by administering the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA). Cognitive status was measured by the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). RESULTS: Overall, 142 individuals participated in this study. Statistical analysis showed differences in both overall MNA scores and MNA assessment scores. Significantly more participants from the SHA setting were at risk of malnutrition compared to the home-living setting. CONCLUSION: Screening and assessment of nutritional status and prevention interventions should be considered in SHA settings.