Mental health of elderly people living in the nursing home and living with their families (Comparative study)
Authors: Omar Ali , Abdessalam Hamida 
Published: January 2024

This is a comparative study that aimed at recognizing levels of of mental health among the old people who live in institutions and those who live with their families. and to find whether there were differences between the old people who live in institutions and those who live with their families to the variables (gender - age group - educational level - health status). The sample of the study consists of (56) old people (both males and females).the old people who live in institutions and those who live with their families and registered with Security Services Office their ages ranged between (65 - 79) years, with an average age and standard deviation (70.93 ± 3.77).

               The study used the comparative descriptive approach, and to achieve the goals, the researchers used the mental health measure, which consists of (46) paragraphs prepared by (Muhammad, Areej Khalil 2016). The data was analyzed with the help of the SPSS statistical package, and after verification of the validity and consistency of the scale, it was applied to the study sample, and after data collection and statistical treatment using t-test for two samples and two independent samples and the direction of mono-contrast analysis

Results showed:

               -The average sample height is higher than the assumed mean of the scale and its fields, and this indicates that the sample has an average level of mental health

               -There are no statistically significant differences between the elderly residing in the nursing home and the elderly residing with their families on the total score and all dimensions of the mental health scale except for the competence and self-confidence dimension where the differences were in favor of the residents of the nursing home

               - There are no differences between the elderly residing in the care home and those residing with their families "in the degree on the scale of mental health and its fields according to the gender variable.

               -There are statistically significant differences for the elderly residing in the role of the elderly and residents with their families according to the variable of health and physical condition on the total degree and on the dimensions (efficiency, self-confidence, social interaction and human and values ​​dimension), and the differences were in favor of good health status, while there were no differences on the dimension (Emotional maturity and freedom from neurological diseases).

               -There are no differences between the elderly residing in the care home and those residing with their families "in the grade on the mental health scale and its fields according to the variable of the age group

               - There are no differences between the elderly residing in the care home and those residing with their families "in the degree on the scale of mental health and its fields according to the variable of the educational level

               -These results were discussed in the light of the theoretical framework and previous studies, and to complete the aspects related to the study, the two researchers came up with a number of recommendations and proposals.