Objectives: Elderliness is a biological process that is experienced by all living creatures, among them are human beings. Elderly population in the country is increasing, and in order to face this phenomena understanding the existing status of the country>s elderly is necessary.

Methods & Materials: This research has been done within the framework of the objectives of the plan to empower the rural elderly, and in order to determine the present status of health concerning the rural elderly (such as the rate of handicap prevalence and its kinds and the rate of prevalence of diseases and their different kinds among rural elderly) with the purpose of offering different preventive medical and rehabilitation services to them. Determining the social status of the elderly with different dimensions, and also determining the basic needs of rural elderly in order to provide services suitable for them is among other objectives of this research.

Results: This research uses the Descriptive-Studious method of the kind of «cross survey studies». In order to gather information and data, two kinds of questionnaires have been used: « the questionnaire for evaluating the social status and the health of elderly» and «the questionnaire for elderly need measurement». This plan has been done in Koraeem District of Nir city from Ardabil Province. The district has 34 villages, 14383 population, and 49 lindividuals whose ages are above sixty years. In order to analyze the data, descriptive statistics method (frequency and percent) together with SPSS software have been used.

Conclusion: The rate of the elderly in the case mentioned above was estimated 3.41%. 28.8% of the elderly have missed their spouse and 70.1% of them are married, 14.3% are unable to do their own personal affairs, 8.6% live alone, 8.4% are under the supervision of protective institutions, 8.4% are suffering from different kinds of handicap, and the highest rate of prevalence of handicap is hearing handicap with the rate of 3.7%. 50.5% of them are suffering from different kinds of diseases. Heart diseases and blood pressure with the prevalence of 25.3% is the most prevalent disease among the elderly. 20% of the elderly are in need of nutrition, wearing clothes, and home, 19%in need of medical and hygienic services, 10%in need of rehabilitation services, 41% in need of programs for leisure time, and 10% in need of social honoring and valuation.

Objectives: Life expectancy has increased over the world and resulting in increased number of old people. Thus, it is not just the living years which are important now, but the quality of life is itself a goal. This includes the elderly living in the rural areas as well to help recognize what steps tobe taken to promote these older peoples’ health and prevent disability. This study intends to examine the quality of life of the rural elderlies living in Dashti District of Boushehr Province, Iran.

Methods & Materials: In a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytic study,we examined quality of life of the rural older people of Dashti District of Boushehr Province in February 2010, using SF-36 quality of life questionnaire. Applying a multistage cluster sampling, 69 rural older people who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were selected as samples. Data gathering was performed through face to face interview and the statistical software SPSS 17 was used for data analysis. One-way analysis of variance and T-Test were used to determine the relationships between demographic variables and quality of life.

Results: The quality of life significantly varied in different ages and marital statuses in its two subscales of vitality and mental health (P<0.05). There was no statistically significant differences in the quality of life of male and female older people (P>0.05). The mean score of sub-scale of physical role limitation was significantly higher in the subjects who were able to read Quran (P=0.016) compared to those who could not. The mean scores of quality of life and its dimensions in the older people living in Dashti Districtwere less than median except in the subscale of social function.

Conclusion: According to the results, the quality of life of rural older people in Dashti District is lower than the average, so immediate attention and interventions are necessary to improve their quality of life.