MEDICAL AND SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF GERIATRIC PATIENTS IN MEDICAL ORGANIZATIONS OF MONGOLIA

Introduction. Improving care for the elderly and senile requires an assessment of not only their health status, but also their social well-being, as well as their lifestyle, including their attitude to their health. Aim. To study the medical and social characteristics, including lifestyle features, of geriatric patients who admitted to the medical organizations in Mongolia. Material and methods. With the help of a specially designed questionnaire, a sociological survey was conducted of 726 respondents older than working age, who applied to aimak or soum hospitals, to the gerontological center of Ulaanbaatar or geriatric rooms of district medical centers in Mongolia. We studied the medical and social characteristics of elderly and senile people, their subjective assessment and attitude to their own health, as well as medical activity. Results and discussion. Respondents of elderly and senile age believed that their health is mainly influenced by lifestyle, quality of medical care, family relations and financial situation. Despite the fact that almost all respondents had several chronic diseases, they showed insufficient medical activity. At the same time, many rarely and irregularly sought medical help, did not always follow the preventive recommendations they received, did nothing to maintain and improve their health, smoked and drank alcohol. In addition, the degree of mobility, self-service and physical activity of the respondents indicated a rather low socio-psychological adaptation. Conclusion. The results obtained will make it possible to correct the main directions for further implementation of measures for the health protection of the elderly and senile in Mongolia in modern conditions. © 2022, LLC "IMC" Modern Clinical Medicine. All rights reserved.