Comparative study of quality of life of elderly living in condominiums versus community dwellers.

OBJECTIVE To compare the quality of life of elderly living at a geriatric institution with that of elderly living in the community. METHODOLOGY Quantitative study in which the quality of life of 50 elderly living in condominiums was compared with that of 173 community dwellers. To assess the quality of life, the instruments WHOQOL-BREF and WHOQOL-OLD were applied. The data were collected between November 2011 and February 2012. RESULTS The groups differed significantly with regard to the domains: physical, environment, functioning of the senses and participation, which were better in the condominium residents; while the community dwellers scored higher in the domain intimacy. CONCLUSION Different factors can interfere in the elderly's quality of life, including the place of residence, which indicates the need for further monitoring by health professionals, especially nurses, with a view to outlining strategies to maintain the elderly's quality of life.