A Study to Assess the Effects of Nursing Intervention on Quality of Sleep among Elderly People with Sleep Disturbance Residing in Selected Oldagehomes at Trichy in Tamilnadu

Background: Sleep is an important component for establishing a proper physical, mental and emotional wellbeing of an individual. It is a highly complex and organized phenomenon and its structure tend to change with advancing age. The consequences of chronic sleep problems are considerable among older adults. It highlights the importance of treating sleep problems in the elderly. The non-pharmacological interventions can be the better choice to manage sleep problems in elderly. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of nursing intervention on quality of sleep among elderly people with sleep disturbance. Methods: The study design was quasi experimental, non-randomized, pretest posttest, control group design. A total of 180 participants, 90 in each experimental and control group were included. Quality of sleep was assessed by Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The nursing intervention used for this study includes Sleep Hygiene Education and Progressive Muscle Relaxation. The elderly people in experimental group received 16 weeks of nursing intervention including one week learning session and 15 weeks practice session. Results: There was a highly significant difference between the control group and experimental group on overall sleep quality (p<.001) and also there was a significant difference in all the components of quality of sleep. Conclusion: Sleep disturbance is common among elderly. In geriatric population with sleep disturbance, sleep hygiene education and progressive muscle relaxation are the effective means of interventions in improving their quality of sleep.