Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte (Psychiatric University Hospital of Charité at St. Hedwig Hospital), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt- Universität zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Große Hamburger Str. 5-11, 10115, Berlin, Germany.
Psychiatr Q. 2022 Dec;93(4):1017-1030. doi: 10.1007/s11126-022-10006-7. Epub 2022 Nov 9.
Loneliness among the elderly is a widespread phenomenon and is connected to various negative health outcomes. Nevertheless, loneliness among elderly inpatients, especially those with a psychiatric diagnosis, has hardly been examined. Our study assessed loneliness in elderly inpatients, identified predictors, and compared levels of loneliness between inpatients on psychiatric and somatic wards.
N = 100 elderly inpatients of a somatic and psychiatric ward were included. Levels of loneliness were assessed, as were potential predictors such as depression, psychological resilience, severity of mental illness, well-being, daily functioning, and psychiatric diagnosis. Analyses of group differences and hierarchical multiple regression analysis were conducted.
37% of all inpatients reported elevated levels of loneliness. Significant predictor variables were self-reported depressive symptoms, well-being, severity of mental illness, being single and living with a caregiver. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that the full model explained 58% of variance in loneliness. Psychiatric inpatients' loneliness was significantly higher than loneliness in somatic inpatients. When analyzing group differences between inpatients with different main psychiatric diagnoses, highest levels were found in patients with an affective disorder, followed by those treated for organic mental disorder. Since the study took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, potential influence of different measurement points (lockdown vs. no lockdown) were analyzed: Differences in loneliness depending on the phase of the pandemic were non-significant.
Elderly inpatients experience high levels of loneliness, especially those with a mental disorder. Interventions to reduce loneliness in this population should address predictors of loneliness, preferably through multiprofessional interventions.
老年人孤独是一种普遍现象，与各种负面健康结果有关。然而，老年人住院患者，尤其是那些有精神科诊断的患者的孤独感几乎没有被研究过。我们的研究评估了老年住院患者的孤独感，确定了预测因素，并比较了精神科和躯体病房住院患者的孤独感水平。
纳入了 100 名躯体和精神病房的老年住院患者。评估了孤独感水平，以及抑郁、心理弹性、精神疾病严重程度、幸福感、日常功能和精神科诊断等潜在预测因素。进行了组间差异分析和层次多重回归分析。
37%的住院患者报告存在较高水平的孤独感。显著的预测变量是自我报告的抑郁症状、幸福感、精神疾病严重程度、单身和与照顾者一起生活。层次多重回归分析显示，完整模型解释了孤独感的 58%方差。精神科住院患者的孤独感明显高于躯体科住院患者。当分析不同主要精神科诊断的住院患者之间的组间差异时，发现患有情感障碍的患者孤独感最高，其次是患有器质性精神障碍的患者。由于研究是在 COVID-19 大流行期间进行的，因此分析了不同测量点（封锁期与非封锁期）的潜在影响：孤独感的差异与大流行的阶段无关。
老年住院患者经历着高水平的孤独感，尤其是那些有精神障碍的患者。针对这一人群的孤独感干预措施应针对孤独感的预测因素，最好通过多专业干预措施进行。
