The Dangers Of The Elderly

When it comes to Alzheimer’s, I know firsthand how it affects individuals and their families. My great grandfather had Alzheimer’s for many years before his passing late last year, at age 92. Alzheimer’s is a disease that many individuals suffer with each year, but yet with all the advancements in modern medicine we still have no cure for it. There are different ways to conquer this disease, understanding the causes, knowing effects, and researching possible treatments.

Australia is one of the most advantaged aged care systems in the world. The increasing numbers of ageing population is one of the major transformations being experienced by

Ageism and stereotypes of older people can have an important impact on their physical health, mental health and overall wellbeing. Negative stereotypes of older people being dependent and decrepit can be internalized and become self-fulfilling. These ageist thoughts and stereotypes can lead to older people not seeking health care in general and to not get treatment appropriate for their illness or medical condition due to their age and not based on any other factor.

The term ‘dementia’ describes a set of symptoms which can include loss of memory, mood changes and problems with communication and reasoning. These symptoms occur when the brain is damaged by certain conditions and diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. 
Age is the greatest risk factor for dementia. Dementia affects one in 14 people over the age of 65 and one in six over the age of 80. However, dementia is not restricted to older people: in the UK, there are over 17,000 people under the age of 65 with dementia, although this figure is likely to be an underestimate.

Research conducted by the Australian government in 2011, estimated that 298,000 Australians have been diagnosed with dementia and based on current projections, this number will exceed 400,000 by 2020. (1) Although forecast methods vary, the number of people with dementia is expected to triple between 2011 and 2050 and is estimated to reach approximately 900,000 by 2050. (1)

Many sociologists believe that, like childhood, the age status is socially constructed. Many discussions about old age are negative and stereotypical, therefore it is constructed as a problem. People have different critical stereotypes of elderly people, they see them as, slow, old fashioned, complaining all the time and many other traditional stereotypes. An example of this would be the Griffiths Report. This report claimed that the care of the elderly was pushing society to facing the problem of meeting the growing costs that health and social care needs in order to help the growing number of elderly people. There has also been a recent fear of the ‘pension time bomb’ this has also caused some negative attitudes and concerns that the ageing population creates a

How have social policies and changes to the Australian welfare state affected the aged population.

Dementia is a disease which causes mental debility and affects one’s way of intelligent, attentiveness, recollection and problem-solving (NHS, 2013). As a result of dysfunction of brain cells in some parts of the brain it affects the thinking process then dementia occurs and it usually comes with age (Ibid). It is estimated that 560

What the article may have insinuated was that of the importance of care for the elderly, but also may have enforced elderly stereotypes. The articled talked about getting intensive geriatric service workers for those in need. An intensive geriatric service work would be someone who comes by to help a person who cannot do so on their own, such as visiting to make sure their eating and being taken care of, without them having to be in a home (The Record, 2010, B3). As the article portrays the elderly in a stereotypical way, we must move past it and realise that stereotype is not something we should follow. The reason for not following the stereotype of elderly, being portrayed as weak and always in need of help is the difference between chronological age and physical age (Lesson 8, 2016, p.2). The difference between the two is how one is compared to how old they may feel, some elderly feel as though they are younger than they are and that they do not require help or assistance. What research offers us is those who exercise regularly, eat healthier, and stimulate the brain with cognitive tasks as they get older, are at less chance of cognitive depletion, as in decrease in proper brain functioning as they age, such as memory loss, and even physical deterioration

A topic I learned more of this semester in regards to the older population was dementia. Some loss in memory function is an inevitable consequence of aging, and as one ages, it takes more time to process information and retrieve memories. However, "Dementia is a general term that refers to progressive, degenerative brain dysfunction, including deterioration in memory, concentration, language skills, visuospatial skills, and reasoning, that interferes with a person's daily functioning" (Mauk, 2014, p. 377). This loss of mental skills affects the ability to function over time, causing problems with memory and how one thinks, impacting these individual's overall quality of life.

This paper focuses on aging in Australia, the different policies and services for the aging population, and provides some examples about what it would be like to age in Australia. First, it is important to understand the age care policy in Australia. There are four different components to this policy: the old-aged pension system, pursuit of the aging-in-place policy, self-funded services and supports, and residential and frail aged care. The aged care policy in Australia is “built on the premise of independence and individualization and assumes that older people will remain in the community for as long as they are able to” (Gray & Heinsch, 2009, p. 108). In order to

Chapter 8 discusses some interesting points, even though they appear pessimistic. In the theory of selection, optimization, and compensation: processes that utilizes implicit memory may help Alzheimer's and dementia patients (Sigelman & Rider, 2009). Alzheimer’s is typically associated with the deterioration of episodic memory (Millet et al., 2008). While using repetitive priming, and short delays between sessions, Alzheimer’s patients were on par with control non-Alzheimer’s patients (Millet et al., 2008). On a side note, encouragement and positive stereotyping with old age shows to aide in cognitive and physical responses, and prolonging their independence (Cloudin & Alexopoulos, 2010).

Many sociological theorists studying the older generation focus upon healthcare inequalities as a wider research topic. This is evidently a high prioritisation for older people, yet socially older people experience inequalities and stigmatisation causing a division within society. The reporter will use granted and legal access into older people’s homes to identify inequalities apparent to older people within society from a personal perspective. A qualitative observational approach will be used to allow the informal discussion of each person’s perspective of their place within society. The paper develops an alternative, moral and intimate approach to the varied living standards of the older population, focusing on the mental welfare of each

Chronic disease and conditions are usually defined as those diseases which last for more than six months and which have a severe effect on the life of the individuals (Chronic Conditions and Injury, para.1). While chronic diseases can affect people of all ages and demographics, these types of diseases are very often found in the elderly. Chronic disease are also characterized by "…multiple risk factors, long latency periods, a prolonged course of illness and functional impairment or disability" (Key indicators of progress for chronic disease and associated determinants, 2011, p. 1). Chronic disease is also found to be more prevalent in the ageing demographic of most countries.

Urosepsis can cause adverse effects in geriatric patients, and health care professionals must be careful when prescribing treatment to ensure that the best choice is made for the patient. Urosepsis is defined as an infection that originates in the urinary tract and spills over into the bloodstream. It is considered a medical emergency that causes the diagnosed individual to be admitted into the hospital and immediately given fluids and an anti-infective for treatment (McCance & Huether, 2014).