An Analysis of Factors Affecting Depression among the Elderly in Penang, Malaysia

Malaysia is experiencing "graying of the planet" and would fall into the category of Ageing Population in 2030. This is a phenomenon caused by an increase of elderly in a developing country. Although depression is the most common psychiatric disorder in the elderly, it is commonly not recognized, misdiagnosed and under treated as depression is perceived as part of normal ageing. The untreated depressive elderly have significant social implications as these disorders decreases an individual's quality of life and increases dependence on others. This paper reports the preliminary findings from a current research done in Penang. The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) is a 30 item self-report assessment used to identify depression among the elderly. The GDS questions are answered "Yes" or "No", instead of a five category response set. This simplicity enables the scale to be used with ill or moderately cognitively impaired individuals. Among the factors affecting depression among with the elderly is loneliness, chronic health issues and pain, impairment, loss of loved one/ones, tragic episode, lack of care givers, financial issues, suicide and the loss of interest in living. Elderly females were found to be almost three times more depressed compared to elderly men. These factors need to be addressed immediately for better social and physical functioning among the elderly.