OLDER PEOPLE HEALTH CARE

Older People Health Care

Older People Health Care

Introduction

As people age, their healthcare needs generally increase. Whether, and under what circumstances, these needs are met, however, is as varied as are health policies throughout the world. Elderly people in most developed countries have substantial access to high-quality “Western” medicine whenever need arises. In other countries, availability of and access to even basic medical services for elderly people (or for individuals of any age) is far less predictable. This is not surprising, given the relationship between national wealth and the level of healthcare expenditures in particular countries. While the need for basic healthcare is great in countries in transition (Central and Eastern Europe) and in developing countries (mainly in Asia, Africa, and Latin America), fiscal constraints limit their capacity to deliver needed care for older people.

Central and Eastern European countries' health policies are, at best, in flux and, at worst, in disarray. The rapid collapse of state socialism and the as-yet incomplete transition to robust market economies undermined universal medical provision in most former Eastern-bloc countries. In many, healthcare infrastructures are collapsing and the cost of care is rising beyond the means of older citizens, whose incomes have been decimated in the transition (Merlis, 2000, 141-149).

In UK, where over half of all older people in the world live, extreme poverty and underdeveloped health policies result in scarce medical resources and minimal healthcare infrastructure. Even when basic medical care is available, elderly people in UK face insurmountable barriers to receiving it. Shortages of equipment and supplies combined with high transportation and prescription costs present formidable barriers to care, even when it is nominally free (HelpAge International, 2002).

Healthcare for Ageing Populations

Demographic trends into the foreseeable future signal that elderly people are among the fastest-growing segments in UK, with the most rapid growth among the oldest-old - individuals aged 85 and older. Consequently, healthcare systems may experience unprecedented demands since older persons, on average, have more hospitalizations, more chronic disease, and use more (and more expensive) drugs and therapies than other age groups. Still, illness and disability are not inevitable - many people remain in good health into very old age (Victor, 2003, 39-52). Further, early diagnoses and treatment of conditions associated with ageing, combined with healthy lifestyle choices that mitigate age-related diseases and conditions, may ease some pressures on healthcare financing related to ageing populations.

Lifelong learning, or the idea that individuals continue to learn throughout their

lifetime, has been viewed as an important phenomenon for decades. The topic of what

individuals do after retirement is not new; however, as the number of older adults

increases, that topic has been gaining new life.

Acute Care in UK

In all UK, health policies evolved during the twentieth century to cover virtually all acute medical services for citizens of all ages. Acute healthcare is short-term, episodic care generally provided by physicians and other health professionals in institutional settings, ranging from physician practices to clinics and hospitals. In countries with universalist health policies, basic coverage of hospital ...