| Abstract [eng] |
This thesis examines the relationship between physical and mental health, assessing the role of multiple chronic diseases in the mental health of older adults. The study uses data from SHARE Wave 8 (2019-2020). The sample is selected from the Baltic countries, with a total of 4831 participants. The mean age of the respondents in this study is 70.31 years (SD = 9.84), 62.76% of the respondents are women. 52.35% of the participants have more than two chronic diseases. The correlation study used the CASP-19, EURO-D, BFI-10 scales, ADL and IADL indeces. People with multimorbidity have been found to be more depressed and have a lower quality of life than those multimorbidity. However, it was concluded that multimorbidity predict higher depression symptoms but not higher quality of life when health status characteristics are included in the analysis and socio-demographic, economic, social and personal factors are controlled for. Accordingly, when controlling for the same factors in predicting poorer quality of life and higher depression symptoms, negative health status characteristics such as more medication, more pain, more hospital admissions, more limitations in instrumental activities of daily living, and poorer subjective health, are more important than multimorbidity. Differences also emerged between the Baltic countries, with Lithuanians being the most depressed and Estonians having an exceptionally good quality of life. Lithuania also has the highest hospitalization rate, but has the most positive health perception. Latvians have the worst health perceptions, although they have the lowest ADL index in the Baltics, while Estonia has the highest ADL and IADL index. |
