Evaluation of the relationship between anxiety level DEATH anxiety of people aged 65 and over in the COVİD-19 process

Aim: This research; It was conducted to evaluate the relationship between anxiety and fear of death in individuals over 65 years of age during the Covid-19 process. Material and Method: The study was descriptive and relational. The population of the study consisted of people over 65 years old who went to Martyr Esra Koese Başaran State Hospital for one year. Based on the power analysis for sample calculation, 5% acceptable error and 95% confidence interval were determined as at least 255 individuals and a total of 256 individuals were reached. Data were collected using the Descriptive Characteristics Form, the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (VAS), and the Death Anxiety Inventory (SCA). Percent, mean, median, standard deviation in the analysis calculation of the data; Mann Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis H test, Dunn test by data characteristics; Kolmogorov-Smirnov normal distribution tests; Spearman's rho correlation coefficient was used to evaluate the relationship between scale scores. The significance level is based on p<0.05. Results: The mean age of participants in the study was 71.81 years. A statistically significant positive and weak correlation was found between age and the general score of SCA and VAS (p<0.001). A statistically significant positive correlation was found between the general SCA and VAS scores (p<0.001). The mean VAS score of the participants was found to be 20.77 and the mean SCA score was found to be 30.84, and they were found to have moderate levels of death anxiety. A significant positive and high correlation was found between the SCA sub-dimensions and the general scores of VAS (p<0.001). Conclusion: It was found that as the anxiety level of individuals over 65 years of age increases during the Covid-19 process, so does the fear of death. At the same time, it was found that the fear of death and the anxiety level of individuals increase with age. Key Words: Anxiety, Covid-19, Death Anxiety