Acta Medica Medianae
Vol. 49, No 4, December, 2010
UDK 61
ISSN 0365-4478(Printed version)
ISSN 1821-2794(Online)
 

Correspondence to:

Ivana Ilić

Zavod za zdrvstvenu zaštitu radnika Niš

Vojislava Ilića bb, 18000 Niš

E-mail: ivanailic.md@gmail.com

Review article
UDC:  614.2

ASSESSING QUALITY OF LIFE: Current Approaches

Ivana Ilić¹, Ivona Milić² and Mirjana Aranđelović^3,1

Zavod za zdravstvenu zaštitu radnika Niš¹

Raiffeisen banka a.d, Beograd²

Univerzitet u Nišu - Medicinski fakultet Niš³

The authors of this paper consider the concept of the quality of life and health-related quality of life (QOL) by paying special attention to the relevance of the researches taken so far, related to the “quality of life”, the impact and ways of estimating the QOL through social, cultural or health interventions, taking into account both social and economic aspects. The detailed objectives of the research were: to present the “broader picture” of QOL and the definitions already established by previous researches; to identify social and economic indicators that can be used to measure the QOL. Specific aims of the literature review were to summarize various definitions of the concepts of QOL in general and explore the difficulties encountered in measuring the QOL, to cite the standard methods and results, and criticize methodologies.

As far as possible, in this literature review, the authors attempted to maintain consistency in terms’ use. However, based on the results obtained, it is inevitable to avoid the confusion when using the term QOL. A key part of this is the inter-changeable use of different concepts discussed below. The overall conclusions point to possible options for future researches in this field.  Acta Medica Medianae 2010;49(4):52-60.

Key words: quality of life, subjective/objective QOL measures, possible approaches