Healthcare and Aging Policy - Research Paper Example

? Healthcare and Aging Policy Analysis Historical background of the social problem: One of the major problems that existed in America for a long time was elder mistreatment. The elders are people who are aged and have lost their physical and cognitive strength to certain extents. This is why these people become the subject for mistreatment. It had been a social policy but in the recent decades it has become a major issue in the health and social services. Elder mistreatment can be defined as the intentional harm created to an elder by any person who is related to the elder. This may also include the failure to satisfy the needs of the elders or protect them from harms. It is unfortunate, that most of the times mistreatment is being caused but the people are unaware of it (Falk, 2012). Elder mistreatment is most of the times not reported because of the lack of training given to professional who miss it out. It has been reported that about 1.2 million elders are mistreated every year by self or others. 450,000 cases are new every year which are identified, yet the awareness and control has been sparse. These alarming figures have lead to the immense need to address and assess the mistreatment caused to elders through abuse, neglect or exploitation. There is no definite cause for elder abuse as it varies on situations and there can be a number of reasons why elders are mistreated at home or at nursing care homes (Stiegel, 2010). Historical background of the policy: The Elder Justice Act was introduced in 2003 to improve the conditions of this social problem in America. The act was initially introduced by Senator John Breaux. The act was not only designed to address the elder mistreatment but also to address to the message of human rights for freedom from exploitation and abuse. The Elder Justice Coalition was formed which brought together all advocates who were committed to the social policy of elder protection. After 2003, the coalition fought and ensured that the Elder Justice Act was signed (Mellor, 2013). In 2010, the Elder Justice Act was signed into law by President Obama. It was passed in the Patient Protection and Affordability Act which was a health care reform. This act was addressed as the identification and recognition of the problem which had marked the beginning of the end of elder mistreatment. This act covered a large area which included the administration of the health care and the streaming of the problem by creating provisions to make proposals and alternatives for the problem. The act is now a law and it covers and authorizes the dealing of the funds which are necessary to implement and provide benefits to those elders who are mistreated nationwide (Pampel, 2008). Bases of Social Allocation: It is important to analyze the group of people who come under the Elder Justice Act (EJA). This act is selective as it is for those people who are eligible and who need the services the most. This group of people is the elders who are above 60 years of age and are through any means being abused, tortured, mistreated or exploited. Research has concluded that elders who are disabled, demented or the ones who live in nursing homes suffer more abuse and mistreatment. Approximately 14 million of elders over 65 years of age are disabled in the U.S. These elders are more likely to be a subject of abuse by family members, care takers, service providers or other people associated to them. Such mistreatment causes risk to the activities and health of the elder (Brown, 2011). It was concluded that female elders are abused more than males and this is why they tend to die earlier. Elders who have dementia are also at the risk of being abused because of their attitudes and behaviors. They might become a burden or a responsibility on the family members or the care takers. About 5.1 million elders in America have some kind of dementia. Other elders who are at risk are the ones who live in private homes or nursing homes. These elders are the ones who are mostly unemployed and are dependent on the people around them. Abuses and mistreatment from family members is a very common problem in America. Types of Social Provision: The elderly who come under this law are provided resources that detect, treat, prevent and understand the abuse and exploitation. Under this provision, the Department of Health and Human Services is required to establish an Elder Justice Coordinating Council and Advisory Board on Elder Abuse to regulate the policies and strategies for long term care. Forensic centers also have to be developed so that the expert services are provided related to abuse, neglect or exploitation. Other efforts for the elderly protection are training and facilities for the care employees, assisting facilities and off setting the costs related to health care systems to reduce the complications and errors. The provision also provides the information about the violations taken place by nurses or employees, funds are provided to the state and local protection services and institutes to carry out effective investigation, research and prosecution. Grants are also provided to the programs that are set up to protect the elders so that these programs are effective. These committees and programs are set up to ensure that the elders are provided with efficient care and any inappropriate activity is fully investigated and acted upon. Grants are provided to train a wide range of people involving such as care providers, protectors, fiduciaries, victim advocates, and judges (Fisher, 2010). Strategies for Delivery: It is the responsibility of the State governments under this Act that they provide the elders of that State proper protection and care services. The delivery of services is the responsibility of the public sector. Every state is provided with the funds that are collected through grants. The states are responsible to use those funds to operate the programs and institutions in their state effectively to serve the elders. The funds should be used to manage the activities and carry out the investigations to ensure that no violence is taking place. The elders should be provided with facilities through which they can repot and file complaints and the authorities should ensure that these complaints are well responded to. It is the state’s responsibility to create reports and submit it to the secretary. This report will include the evaluation of the programs, services, institutions, operations and facilities that have been provided to the elders for their security and how effective have they been on the overall treatment of elders. Training is also under the state government to be provided to the care takers and service providers to use enhanced methods to detect abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Ways to Finance Provision: The provision is financed by grants which are collected by the government. These grants fund the programs and services that are carried out under this provision. These grants are rewarded to different states by the secretary who uses them to carry out surveys showing the position of elderly and then funding in training of professionals. These professionals then detect that where abuse or neglect is taking place through various methods. Funds are provided by the public sector to enhance the position of the elders in the society. Many facilities are given to the elders as well such as ways to report or make complaints. In the beginning, the federal government proposed a budget of $100 million for the Elder Justice Act which was followed by an additional $25 million. However, Congress has not funded for the Elder Justice Act yet but the president proposed the federal budget for this year which included $8 million for the enactment of this provision (Phelan, 2013). Values in the Policy: Equality: The provision has made a remarkable affect on the protection of elders in America. There are several values embedded in this provision. The act has been serving elders since 2010 and is successful in carrying out programs and giving services to those elders who are abused or neglected. The funds are collected and distributed efficiently giving a rise to equality in the number of resources and opportunities given. The secretary and the state governments have to ensure that the funds are utilized to help the elders as much as possible. Hence, opportunities are provided to the elders and the care takers in accordance to the resources which are allocated. In accordance to the amount of resources, the benefits are given to the elders in a way that they are equalized. Equity: However, the provision does not provide equality that is disproportional and results in unfair treatment. The provision provides equity to all elders in a way that they are given opportunities proportionately. The provision ensures that there is no class, status or wealth difference amongst the elders and the services provided to them. This means that fair treatment must be given to all the elders despite their position. Moreover, fair treatment to all the workers in the organizations should also be regarded under the provision. The provision ensures that all workers, caregivers, researches etc are given the proper treatment according to their positions. The organizations will take care of their needs and values. Organizational practices will be motivational and thoughtful without forcing any worker to care for the elderly. Through the training sessions, motivation will be given to the workers and incentives will be given according to the nature of their work and how they have contributed in the society (Snyder, 2012) Adequacy: The provision also gives adequate amount of wages and incentives to the workers such as stability for long term care workforce. The employees include staff members, administrating directors and charge nurses. These employees must be given the adequate amount of wages that they require to maintain a decent standard of physical well being. The provision for the elders will be to fulfill their adequate needs. The funds will be allocated in a way where they will be enough to fulfill the basic needs of the elder recipients. It is important to ensure that the employees are able to fulfill the basic needs of the elders which include communication, physical requirements, disabilities, age or other barriers. Other Values: Cost-effectiveness: The provision is cost effective as it ensures that each dollar of the fund is spent on the elders who are most in need. There are several elders who are subjected to abuse or neglect, but the funds do not allow all these elders to be treated and cared greatly. Hence, the provision ensures that the test of eligibility is carried out and those elders who are most in need are cared effectively. The provision ensures that every dollar spent is for the well being of the elders and provides justice to the ones who are most in need. Social effectiveness: The social effectiveness of this provision allows that all workers are treated equally as an equal member of the group. All employees have different tasks and their eligibility to serve in the provisional jobs will ensure that they are considered to be an equal part of the group no matter what their position is. The employees are given various tasks that they have to perform when they are performing their duties under the provision. These employees’ eligibility is tested and it is ensured that it is universal that the members are treated equally. In the workplace, all the employees’ needs and physical requirements are fulfilled and they are treated with equity (Stark, 2011). Freedom of Choice: The provision also allows freedom of choice for all individuals. The elders are protected from all sorts of abuses including self-neglect. Thus, the provision allows employees to be trained to communicate with the elders and convince them for the care plans and services which are planned for them. Along with this, the elders are also given the freedom of choice to make their own preferences. The employees working in the organizations are also given freedom of choice which allows them to freely work and carry out their tasks. This provision does not enforce any task on any employee or worker. This outlines a systematic flow according to which all the activities should be carried out. Social Control: In order to maintain social control, the provision allows the employees to gain in-kind or special benefits. This allows the employees to stay motivated and manage the social controls that influence their behavior or work patterns. Employees can gain several benefits such as benefits in kind or getting paid only when they go to the work training program. The provision can allow the employees to be paid according to their performance in the institutes, nursing homes and organizations controlling and monitoring the elder mistreatment. Freedom of Dissent: The provision also provides a freedom of dissent to all the individuals. The organizations and institutions are managed by managers and administration directors that handle conflicts and retain the efficiency in the organizations. Thus, the employees can put forward their conflicting opinions and these viewpoints will be heard. The provision gives the leniency to the employees so that they are not burdened or unsatisfied with their work. The purpose is to motivate individuals who will work together in order to improve the conditions of the elders in the society. Efficiency: The efficiency of the provision is valid as the planning and strategy making is done by the bureaucrats, not by the elective representatives. This has made the policy making efficient and effective. All the plans that are made for organizational controls and strategies to control the employees are made by government officials. The provision is authentic and is managed by a few people making the decision making quicker and easier. Bureaucrats handle the management of the provision in a well planned manner and thus the provision is considered efficient (Stark, 2011). Local Autonomy: There is no local autonomy under this provision as it is under the federal government. The federal government does not allow the regional government to spend the funds in the ways they want. These funds are given to the state governments but their reports are to be sent to the secretary regularly. A block grant is given to the state governments but the provision outlines the ways in which the funds are to be spent. Centralization: The federal government provides specific purpose grants to the regional government which is a lump sum amount that is used to manage the organizations and institutes that are responsible for elder mistreatment issues and reports. These funds are given to the state government under certain conditions. The provision outlines the ways the funds could be spent and presents the services and facilities that can be covered by these funds. Conclusion: However, the Elder Justice Act signifies the importance of the elders in the United States of America which was lost somewhere during the past years. Through awareness programs, councils, training programs and other centers, the provision manages to reduce the abuse, neglect or exploitation which takes place in various nursing and private homes. The provision also provides easier ways of filing reports and complaining, thus has resulted in effective control on the mistreatment of elders. References Brown, K. (2011). Elder Justice: Stronger Federal Leadership Could Enhance National Response to Elder Abuse. DIANE Publishing Falk, N. (2012). Elder Mistreatment and the Elder Justice Act. The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing Fisher, B. (2010). Encyclopedia of Victimology and Crime Prevention. SAGE Mellor, J. (2013). Elder Abuse and Mistreatment. Routledge Pampel, F. (2008). Rights of the Elderly. Infobase Publishing Phelan, A. (2013). International Perspectives on Elder Abuse. Routledge Snyder, D. (2012). Elder Crimes, Elder Justice. Jones & Bartlett Publishers Stark, S. (2011). Victims of Abuse, An Issue of Nursing Clinics. Elsevier Health Sciences Stiegel, L. (2010). Elder Justice Act Becomes Law, But Victory is only Partial. ABA Commission on Law and Aging Read More