Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a serious health problem that has significant effects on the life status of elderly persons. Use of the empowerment approach is necessary for health promotion in older people with COPD, but little attention has so far been paid to all the dimensions of empowerment in the management of COPD, which would provide useful knowledge regarding elders with COPD. This article reports on a study exploring people’s experiences of the empowerment of older people with COPD. This study adopted an exploratory qualitative design and was carried out using grounded theory methodology. Grounded theory was considered appropriate for this study because of its focus on how people respond to and act on the problems that they encounter. We collected data by conducting in-depth semi-structured interviews and taking field notes. Twenty-four participants were selected through purposive sampling.The results showed that in encountering the complexity of disease and in response to difficulties induced by COPD, three strategies were applied. Elderly persons with COPD, their family caregivers, and professional team members engaged in “managing life with COPD,” “striving to keep abreast of life,” “preparing for battle with disease,” and “helping to stabilize the elder’s life.” The outcome of these strategies was “co-existence with disease.” The potential of “managing life with COPD” was influenced by the following factors: “co-existence with ageing,” “personal potential,” “a challenged health system,” and “weak social support.” “Managing life with COPD” enables the elder to feel in control and live optimally. This is a fragile balance, however, and the unpredictability of COPD can tip the elder into “self-efficacy.” Understanding the experiences of the empowerment process of older people with COPD can help health professionals provide more focused elderly care.

Background: Continuing care of an elderly patient with Alzheimer's disease may result in psychosocial and physical disorders in family caregivers, as well as limitations to providing complete care. Objectives: The aim of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of resilience education in the mental health of family caregivers of elderly patients with Alzheimer's disease. Methods: This study followed a randomized, clinical trial design. The study population consisted of family caregivers of elderly patients with Alzheimer's disease who referred to hospitals and neurologists' offices located in the western cities of Mazandaran province, Iran. Data were collected between 2016 and 2017. Fifty-four family caregivers were recruited through convenience sampling and randomized into control and intervention groups (27 in each group). Demographic characteristics, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and General Health Questionnaire were used for data collection. Resilience education was provided in eight sessions (45 min each) using PowerPoint presentations and educational pamphlets. The mental health scores were calculated using the indices including normality tests and analyzed using the independent and paired t-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Bonferroni test. Results: An independent t-test showed improvements in the mental health status of those who received the educational intervention (mean difference: 23.8 ± 6.4; P < 0.001). The independent t-test also indicated statistically significant differences between the groups' anxiety/insomnia (8.8 ± 2.3 versus-0.12 ± 2.5), somatic symptoms (7.2 ± 2.2 versus-0.9 ± 1.03), social dysfunction (4.5 ± 2.9 versus 0.2 ± 1.3), and depression (3.2 ± 2.2 versus-0.08 ± 0.6; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Resilience education successfully improved the mental health of family caregivers. Therefore, it is suggested that healthcare providers, Alzheimer's associations, and NGOs provide educational interventions to help promote the caregivers' mental health.

Introduction: Knowledge of nurses regarding elder abuse can be helpful in decisions about on-time and appropriate interventions. Our aim was to assess the relationship between recognition of nursing staff toward elder abuse and their attitudes, and performance in dealing with elder abuse induced by Iranian family caregivers. Methods: In this descriptive study, 400 nurses were selected, using cluster sampling, from nurses working in public or private hospitals in Iran. Data collection was performed using questionnaires measuring elder abuse symptom recognition, attitudes, and performance. Results: There is a significant relationship between the total scores for recognition of symptoms and elder abuse potential risk factors (p=0.05) and the nurses’ attitudes and performance scores (p = 0.001). There was no significant difference between the nurses’ performance and recognition scores (p = 0.14). Conclusion: Interventions to promote nurses’ recognition via in-service educational programs can improve nurses’ performance in different levels of abuse prevention and the quality of nursing care for the elderly.

Introduction: Diminished physiological tolerance induced heart failure among the elderly patients limit doing their daily activities. Exercising as a non-medical intervention is not usually mentioned for daily activities promotion. The current study was conducted aiming to explore the effects of aerobic and resistance exercise program on physical adaptation in the elderly men patients with heart failure. Methods: This study was a randomized clinical trial design. The study population was all the male elderlies suffering from heart failure type 2 and 3. All the 60 elderlies were randomly assigned using block-randomized allocation into the intervention and the control groups. The study field was Echocardiography ward at Imam Sajjad Hospital in Ramsar. The exercise program was performed for three months in the intervention group. The physical adaptation was assessed in four different time intervals (before 1, 2, and 3 months and also after intervention) and the results were compared between the groups. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 16. Adaptation scores were calculated using the indices, including descriptive statistics and then the following tests were performed: independent and paired t-test, repeated ANOVA, and Bonferoni tests. Results: The results showed a significant statistical difference between the mean scores of distances walked in 6 minutes in four points between the two groups (P≤0.001). The aerobic and resistance exercise programs had promoted the physical adaptation among the elderlies with heart failure as our results approved (P<0.05). Conclusion: Aerobic and resistance exercises can help in promoting the physical adaptation in doing the daily activities in the elderly with heart failure.