Abstract
The aim of this study was to describe the differences in the profile of elderly residents in non-profit and for-profit Long-Term Residential Institutions for the Elderly (ILPI). We visited 12 ILPIs in the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte. Six of them were non-profits housing 260 elderly, and six were for-profit institutions, housing 127 elderly. The unequal characteristics of the elderly in these facilities are based on socioeconomic data and the reason for institutionalization. The data was submitted to Chi-squared or Student’s t, with a significance level of 5%. Illiterate, single, black or brown, individuals with no retirement/pension or healthcare plan, no children and no visitors who purchase something outside the institution with their own money are associated with non-profit ILPIs. When analyzing the reasons for institutionalization, family conflict, abandonment and being homeless were associated with the elderly institutionalized in non-profit ILPIs. The main reason for the elderly institutionalized in for-profit ILPIs was “being ill”. The conditions of the elderly in non-profit ILPIs were poorer, reflecting the social inequality these subjects experienced throughout their lifetime.
Elderly; Long-Term care facilities for the elderly; Socioeconomic factors
