The aim of this study was to identify gender differences in the health status, community service needs, and quality of life of older adults living alone in an urban city in South Korea. A cross-sectional descriptive correlational design was used. The study sampled 1023 older adults (≥65 years) living alone in S* City, during the period from August to October in 2018. Trained interviewers conducted face-to-face interviews with the participants, using the UCLA Loneliness Scale, Short Form Geriatric Depression Scale - Korean version, ENRICHD Social Support Instrument (ESSI), the Mini-Mental State Examination Standard Version (MMSE-2SV), and Health-Related Quality of Life (EQ-5D). 77.8% were women and the mean age was 77.38 years (men = 74.65, women = 78.16). Women had lower socioeconomic and health status than men. Men felt more lonely, depressed, and had suicidal thoughts more frequently than women. Women had more needs regarding care, residential environment, movement, connection, and emergency services than men. In men, depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts, loneliness, and right-hand grip strength were identified using the EQ-5D. The EQ-5D was also used to explain depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts, cognitive function, and physical activity in women. Health status and community service needs were dependent on gender; therefore interventions should be tailored according to gender. Our research found that to decrease depression and suicidal thoughts, improve physical health, and enhance quality of life for older adults living alone, interventions need to be designed to decrease male loneliness and to enhance female cognitive function.

Given South Korea's rapidly aging population, mental health and quality of life (QoL) in older adults are increasingly becoming important. Self-compassion (SC), defined as extending compassion to oneself in times of suffering, has been found to have associations with positive mental health outcomes. This study was performed to examine associations between self-compassion and mental health symptoms, sleep disturbance, life satisfaction, and health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) among older Korean adults. The participants in this cross-sectional study included 203 older Korean adults aged 65 and over. Findings of this study suggest that self-compassion in older adults protects them from developing mental health and sleep disturbance symptoms while enhancing their life satisfaction, self-care, and usual activities. Therefore, interventions fostering self-compassion may benefit older adults' mental health and quality of life.

Social frailty affects various aspects of health in community-dwelling older adults. This study aimed to identify the prevalence of social frailty and the significance of its association with South Korean older adults’ health status and life satisfaction. This study involved a secondary data analysis of the 2017 National Survey of Older Koreans. From the 10,299 respondents of the survey, 10,081 were selected with no exclusion criteria. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to identify the factors related to life satisfaction. Compared with the robust and social prefrailty groups, the social frailty group had higher nutritional risk (χ² = 312.161, p = 0.000), depressive symptoms (χ² = 977.587, p = 0.000), cognitive dysfunction (χ² = 25.051, p = 0.000), and lower life satisfaction (F = 1050.272, p = 0.000). The results of multiple linear regression, adjusted for sociodemographic and health-related characteristics, indicated that social frailty had the strongest negative association with life satisfaction (β = −0.267, p = 0.000). However, cognitive function was significantly positively associated with life satisfaction (β = 0.062, p = 0.000). Social frailty was significantly correlated with physical, psychological, and mental health as well as life satisfaction in community-dwelling older South Koreans. Therefore, accounting for the social aspect of functioning is an essential part of a multidimensional approach to improving health and life satisfaction in communities.

The number of elderly people living alone worldwide is increasing, and the responsibility of the state in this context is emerging. This study aimed to develop a community-based integrated service (CBIS) model of health and social care for older adults living alone. The model was designed based on a literature review of previous community care models and per older adults’ health and daily life needs. Thereafter, feedback on the integrated model was taken from older adults living alone by conducting a survey (n = 1023) and focus group interviews, after which the opinions of the Public type Health Management Promotion Council were considered and content validity was confirmed. The model, comprising eight healthcare services and five social care services, was tested on 22 older adults for two weeks to assess its feasibility and preliminary efficiency. Each service included screening, assessment, providing service, evaluation, and quit. Participants rated their overall satisfaction with the services as 9 out of 10. Care navigators reported feeling comforted and discovered their own sense of being while providing the services. We believe that the CBIS model may foster independence among community-dwelling older adults living alone, thereby improving their quality of life through “aging in place”.

This study explored the psychosocial risk profiles and various characteristics associated with profile membership among Korean older adults living alone. Our analyses were based on a cross-sectional cohort of 1030 community-dwelling older adults (≥ 65 years) living alone in one Korean city. Latent profile analysis was used to identify psychosocial risk profiles across a wide range of psychosocial dimensions (depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, cognitive dysfunction, loneliness, and perceived social support). We then explored the characteristics associated with distinct profiles by conducting bivariate and regression analyses. The three-profile was selected as the best solution: a group with high cognitive dysfunction, high loneliness, and low social support (profile 1), a group with low psychological risks and high social support (profile 2), and a group with high depression and high suicidal ideation (profile 3). Regression analyses showed that a lower frequency of interaction with neighbors or families, a greater frailty score, and lower quality of life were significantly associated with profile 1 or profile 3 than with profile 2 (p < .05). Further, being male and having a poorer nutritional status was more significantly related to profile 3 than profile 2 (p < .05). Findings provide evidence for healthcare professionals when developing interventions to prevent and reduce these psychosocial risks for older individuals living alone. In particular, factors associated with profile membership identified in the study may facilitate more tailored interventions.