The Effect of Religious Intervention on Depression and Quality of Life among Indonesian Elderly: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the effect of religious intervention on depression and quality of life among Indonesian elderly in nursing homes (NHs). Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with repeated measures. Sixty elderly residents at three NHs in three districts in Yogyakarta, Indonesia with the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) score of 5 to 11 were recruited and purposively assigned to the religious intervention group (combining 36 sessions of listening to Qur’anic recital and three sessions of attending a sermon by a preacher), n=30) and the control group (treatment as usual/TAU, n=30). The primary outcome was depression, measured by a short form GDS questionnaire. The quality of life (QOL) as the secondary outcome was assessed by the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL)-BREF Indonesian version. Multiple comparisons on depression scores were analyzed by Mann-Whitney U-test, Friedman test, and Wilcoxon Signed Rank test post-hoc analysis. For multiple comparisons on QOL scores were analyzed by Independent t-test, repeated measurement ANOVA (analysis of variance), and Bonferroni post-hoc analysis. Both groups were evaluated at the baseline, 4th, 8th, and 12nd week after the interventions were performed. Results: In both groups, there were statistically significant reductions in depression scores after the12-week intervention (p<0.001). There was also a statistically significant improvement in QOL mean scores in both intervention and control groups at the 12-week post-intervention. However, the religious intervention group showed a greater decrease in depressive symptoms and a greater improvement in the QOL mean scores than those in the control group. There was a statistically significant difference in geriatric depression median scores and QOL mean scores between groups at the 4th, 8th, and 12nd week post-interventions. Conclusions: It can be concluded that religious-based intervention has a greater impact on relieving depressive symptoms and increasing the QOL amongst elderly NH residents.