Depression a common condition in older hospitalized chronic patients-a transversal study

Objective: To examine the prevalence of depression among older hospitalized patients and its relation to chronic diseases. Method: A transversal study was conducted in a Regional Hospital in South Albania which included a total of 100 hospitalized chronic patients. The study lasted one month and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used for the data collection. Each participant completed a validated Albanian version of the questionnaire. Patients diagnosed with various pathologies who presented for examination but were not admitted to the hospital were excluded from the study. For the data analyses were used descriptive statistics. Results: Participants’ mean age was 55.9 ± 18.45. 46 % of patients were female and 54% were male. The results of variables assessing the depression were as follows: 24% of female patients report “Little interest or pleasure in doing things” nearly every day; 15% of female and 11% of male patients report “Feeling down, depressed, or hopeless”; 39% of female and 24% of male patients feel “tired or have little energy”. The diagnosis was significantly associated with the trend for depression, p<0.05. The most frequent diagnoses diagnosis were hypertension, diabetes, and stroke respectively 23.00%, 14.00%, and 10.00%. Conclusion: Depressive symptoms occur more commonly in older hospitalized patients with chronic diseases. They require a longer rehabilitation time, which influences the day hospital stay. For improving the quality of care and life of this patient a routine depression screening and more support from nurses are recommended.