ASSOCIATION OF HEALTH DEMANDS AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN ELDERLY IN THE COMMUNITY OF BRAZIL AND PORTUGAL
Health of the Elderly; Functional status; Nutritional Status; Depression; Primary Health Care
Background: Character in all countries is urgently needed for the world, but it does not prepare for this change, which makes this issue a problem of public investigation, causing a need for investigation in a public way to provide a gift of the age of active way. Objective: of the problem, this research aims to evaluate the presence of the association of health needs (functional, nutritional and nutritional) with quality of elderly people assisted in primary health care in Brazil. Methods: Observational, comparative, cross-sectional study from Brazil and preserved from Portugal, with elderly people and cognitive status, enrolled in primary health care. The sample consisted of 150 elderly people, 100 from Brazil and 50 from Portugal. The collection of nutritional data took place through interviews, using instruments that evaluated the functionality, the presence of depressive data and the quality of life of this population. Data were not analyzed descriptively and parametric statistical tests were performed. A p-value less than 0.005 was considered significant. Results: Health demands showed up in most of the sample, especially in Brazilians. The Portuguese achieve the best total quality of life score. Among the associations of demands and quality of life, the impairment in the risk of functional decline and in nutrition was mainly related to the physical components and the perception of well-being in Brazilians. The group from Portugal showed association and presence of nutritional disorders with nutritional domains, Social Function and Mental Health. Conclusion: The physical health project: physical component that the main aspects of QOL that are associated with health needs and physical dimension, perception of health and general physical dimension (health aspect and physical dimension) and social function (mental and social aspect).