Social programs and the quality of life of elderly people in situations of extreme poverty

Abstract

Within 30 years, two out of every five people will be over 60 years old and more than 80% of these people will live in countries with medium and low economic incomes, so it is urgent that these countries implement policies to reverse this situation. This study aimed to identify the impact of social programs on the quality of life of elderly people living in extreme poverty. This study was explanatory-cross-sectional, working with 634 elderly people between 66 and 97 years old, in the provinces of: San Román, Puno and Azángaro in the Puno region. The Fumat scale was constructed to assess quality of life, followed by multiple linear regression analysis with a significance level lower than 0.05. The results indicated that the Comprehensive Health System is the social program that contributes most to quality of life (β = 0.341; p < 0.001) compared to the social programs: Social Inclusion Energy Fund (β = 0.024; p < 0 .05) and the Pensión 65 program (β = 0.018; p < 0.05). Maintaining a good quality of life and good health in adulthood is decisive for enjoying a full and satisfying life.

Keywords

• quality of life
• social programs
• emotional wellbeing
• personal development
• social inclusion