Enablers and Barriers in Utilization of Geriatric Welfare Services among the Elderly Attending OPDs in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Dakshina Kannada District: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: The population of older adults in India is increasing. As ageing progresses, geriatric population become physically and financially vulnerable and dependent. To meet their various needs, marks the requirement for geriatric welfare services. Objectives: The objectives of the study were among the elderly attending the outpatient department (OPD’s) of tertiary care hospital of Dakshina Kannada district (a) to find out the utilization rate of geriatric welfare services among elderly and (b) to determine the enablers and barriers associated with utilization of geriatric welfare services. Materials and Methods: This was a hospital OPD based cross-sectional study conducted from April to May 2019. Adults aged >60 years were administered a self-developed semi-structured questionnaire, which was entered using Epicollect 5 software. Results: A total of 220 participated in the study. Literacy was found to be low in the study population. The results of the study showed that, majority of the elderly population 157 (71.4%) were found to be utilizing Annapurna scheme and 157 (50%) IGNOAS. Special Government Schemes were not utilized optimally. About 56.8% of the older adults were using the National program for the healthcare of the elderly scheme. Less than 0.5% older adults made use of the legal services provided to them. Awareness and knowledge about the schemes 76 (34.5%) and communication and media 55 (25%) were major enablers and lack of awareness and knowledge 95 (43.2%) was found to be the major barrier. Conclusions: The study indicates scope for improvement for utilization of geriatric schemes. Through provision of awareness regarding various schemes through information, health education, and communication and use of media to eliminate the barriers. Key words: Barriers, elderly, enablers, utilization, welfare schemes