Elderly-Final
This is an excerpt from the paper...
The elderly represent a growing portion of the U.S. population, “The older population in the United States is growing very rapidly. The numbers of very old people have increased by over 50% in each decade since 1940” (Mookherjee 72). Their numbers loom so large many fear Social Security will collapse when the majority of baby boomers hit retirement. Increases in the average life expectancy mainly due to medical advances also mean the elderly are living longer lives past retirement. Aging causes fear in many individuals, but this fear is engendered to a large degree because of society’s perceptions of the elderly. In general, most people associate aging with the loss of faculties, both physical and mental. The loss of independence is also a fear among the aging, one that adds to the negative perceptions of aging in our society. All too often the elderly are perceived as a burden. Many typically end up in rest homes where they are not a burden to family or friends, and where they also remain out of view from the younger generations who are no longer confronted with the inevitability of their own aging. The obsession on youth in American culture couple with the abhorrence of age also creates a negative perception of the elderly. Plastic surgery and entire industries centered around delaying the aging process are more popular than ever before in our culture—all geared to delay the inevitability of aging. Therefore, many researchers conten
. . .
us, availability of transportation, housing, and social interaction are also related to their perceptions of well-being” (Mookherjee 72).
One of the most common types of abuse against the elderly, even though other forms of abuse like physical, emotional and sexual do occur, is financial abuse. Many times the elderly are taken advantage of in a financial way, but the abusers are not the commonly perceived door-to-door or telephone scam artists. All too often it is friends or distant relatives who financially abuse the elderly. Care givers who inadequately deal with stress are among the biggest physical abusers of the elderly. Often their abusers are relatives or acquaintances who have their own problems, such as mental illness or alcoholism. Further, the elderly are often made more vulnerable by legislation that permits just about anyone to gain guardianship of them. The elderly often have little input in such decisions, and they are routinely stripped of their right to vote, drive a vehicle, control their finances and many other basic life decisions. Adding to the problem is new medical technology that keeps people alive even when their quality of life is severely diminished. The choice of withdrawing life-support mac
. . .
Some common words found in the essay are:
Social Security, Giles Noels, Marion Berry, United Sates, Salzburg Austria, M196 Unfortunately, ELDERLY Perceptions, Americans Medicare, Gerontology Biological, Medicaid Recent, service learning, perceptions aging, elderly people, perceptions elderly, elderly patients, negative stereotypes, prescription drugs, negative perceptions, student perceptions aging, elderly americans, generic drugs, negative perceptions elderly, disability influenced service, aging disability influenced, perceptions aging disability,
Approximate Word count = 2649
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)
|
Customer Service
to Over
32,000 Professionally Written Papers!!!
