AGING POPULATION AND THEIR HEALTH STATUS

The Effect of Aging Population on Health and Their Health Status

Table of Contents

Overview3

Aims of the Study4

Background of the Study4

Health Needs of Older People9

New Policy Frameworks11

Old Age in a Changing World12

Research Questions14

Research Design and Methods14

Ethical Implications15

Time Table16

Literature Search18

Keywords18

Likely Impacts / Results19

References20

Research Costs25



Overview

Our population is getting older. The implications of the demographic ageing of societies represent one of the major challenges for the 21st century. Governments and organizations across the public and private sector are starting to plan for and adapt to the impact of a larger elderly population. It is undeniable that the greater the number of older persons in a population, the higher the demands on health and social care services. Previously, some research has been done regarding population ageing locally and nationally. However, there is still a need for evidence to correlate trends toward an ageing population with changes in health status and the usage of health services, especially in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area. This project will build on a complementary study currently being carried out by Glasgow Centre for Population Health.

Aims of the Study

This study will aim at studying the effects of Aging Population on Health and the Health Status of the older persons. This study will also enumerate the problems related to health of older persons, their health needs and the need to finance their health related issues. This study will also identify a number of key themes and lessons which emerge from this compressed review.

Background of the Study

There is general dissatisfaction with defining old age in purely chronological terms, but there would appear to be no universally appropriate alternatives to this approach. Old age is perceived and understood in a multitude of different ways, often with important cultural variations. These may refer to physical appearance, key life events (for example retirement or some other form of disengagement), or social roles (grandparenthood, or ceremonial duties) (Midwinter, 1991). Since old age can cover a span of over three decades, most cultures distinguish between the "old old" and "young old", and it is usually more meaningful to think in terms of a gradual change, rather than a sharp cut-off between adulthood and later life. Social attitudes and media imagery rarely reflect this hetero- geneity of old age, and the labelling of elders as dependent, vulnerable and "social victims" is the rule in many countries (Hazan, 1991).

Demographic ageing (defined as an increase in the percentage of a population aged 65 years old or over) is now an established trend in most world regions, with the exception of Africa (Tables 1 and 2). To date, the process has been much more evident in developed countries. Indeed, projections of population ageing in Asia and Latin America for 2025 predict very similar levels to those of Europe in the 1970s. However, this does not mean that elderly populations outside the developed world are insignificant. Indeed, since 1980 more older people have been living in developing than developed regions. In Asia and Latin America, rapid rates of ...