Tanya, great analysis of the Duke Social Support Index (DSSI) instrument in your article. With my experience working in the nursing home for several years, I think that the perceived satisfaction with social support and frequency of social interactions are important to the psychological wellbeing of older adults with chronic illness and functional impairment. Although such health difficulties may have a critical impact on quality of life via the stressful experience of loss of role status, impaired sense of well-being, and disruption of social support, I find that it may be possible to lessen such adverse psychological consequences by increasing perceived social support and promoting social
