Caring for the Elderly - Essay Example

of the Nursing of the Concerned Teacher 18 March Caring for the Elderly It is a fact that eventually all individuals do tend to get old. As people age, they do happen to need a bit more help in carrying on with their day to day life. Sometimes the elderly people do happen to get much respect and care from their families at home. However, not all the elderly people do tend to be that lucky and privileged. Traditionally speaking, it was the families that mostly owned the responsibility of caring for the aged (Cox 1993, p. 119). Yet, with the change in work priorities and a shift towards the families where most of the family members tend to work, caring for the elderly has become a responsibility that has been largely institutionalized and constitutes an integral part of the social care system (Burke & Laramie 2000, p. 612). This is because in the contemporary scenario, not all families do have the time and the resources to take care of the elderly people living in their families. In that context the altering gender norms have also constrained the amount of time families could devote to the elderly. Earlier, women used to stay at home and it was they who were entrusted with the responsibility to take care of the elderly. However, with the enhanced participation of women in the workplace, caring for the elderly has become a responsibility that requires the state aid and interference (Kling 2006). The health and well being of the elderly in Wales is an important state priority. The Strategy for Older People in Wales 2008-2013 document does evince much concern for the health and welfare of the elderly. This is a broad based policy document that happens to address almost all the facets of the health and welfare of the elderly people in Wales. Old age homes do provide much care to the elderly people who do not have the families that could take care of them. It does need to be noted that many care homes in Wales do extend much professional care to the elderly (Stewart 2011). Such institutions do have the trained staff and the nurses who not only take care of the elderly, but are conversant with the special health and social issues faced by them (Stewart 2011). The elderly living in the professional old age homes do get regular health checkups and it is also assured that they do manage to get the health services required by them. In that context it does need to be mentioned that Strategy for Older People in Wales 2008-2013 does intend to look into an array of economic, environmental and social issues that do happen to be imminent on the welfare of the elderly (NHS Wales 2015). This document does evince plans to improve on the caring and welfare of the elderly in the times to come. In a way it is a formal recognition of the fact that the elderly people who gave their best to the welfare and upkeep of the society in which they lived and worked do get the best of care and concern at a stage when they are most in need of help from the family, society and the state. In that context it does need to be mentioned that when it comes to caring for the elderly, the society and the professional institutions do need to have some set standards in relation to which their services and working could be assessed and graded. The National Service Framework for Older People in Wales does tend to contrive an array of national standards, to assure that when the citizens do get older, they are readily able to maintain their health and sense of well being and comfort for a long period of time (NHS Wales 2015). The whole objective is to facilitate the elderly with a seamless health and welfare environment that provides them with the best of treatment and the care they ought to get. It also does need to be mentioned that elder abuse is one other problem that has cropped up in Wales and that is being looked into by an array of professional agencies and organizations like Age Cymru (Age Cymru 2015). Elder abuse is an issue in which the elderly people get mistreated by someone who is expected to take care of them and look after them. Elder abuse may involve a wide range of activities and malpractices like stealing from the elderly or pressurizing them to part with their money, neglecting the needs of the elderly people, making decisions regarding the health and well being of the elderly without taking them into confidence or consulting them, physically hurting or abusing an elderly person, threatening, belittling the elderly or acting in a manner that makes them feel embarrassed (Age Cymru 2015). The sad thing is that elder abuse is something that is not confined to institutions or healthcare facilities, but could also be traced at homes, amongst families and could readily be practiced by people whom an elderly person may consider a friend. The good thing is that many state aided organization and NGOs in Wales have taken this issue very seriously and are pressing for making laws that make elder abuse a serious crime (BBC 2011). It is indeed warranted because it is quiet sad to learn that the elderly people who mostly contribute so much to the state and the society in their youth do happen to get such a shoddy treatment when they are most in need of kindness and care of their fellow citizens. When it comes to caring for the elderly, NHS Wales has indeed been at the forefront of extending an array of community, inpatient and day hospital facilities to the elderly (NHS Wales 2015). There are many government programs targeting the special issues faced by the elderly like sickness, mental health issues and the marginalization of the elderly people in the larger social framework. Conclusively speaking, caring for the elderly is an issue and a responsibility that should be envisaged with much care, sensitivity and consideration. It is the elderly people who happen to be vulnerable in many ways at such a delicate phase in life and it is the duty of the state and the citizens to assure that they get a good deal from the varied facets of the state and the society. Besides, tough laws need to be made against and zero tolerance needs to be evinced against serious issues like elder abuse, which specifically harm and target the elderly people. Reference List Age Cymru 2015, Protecting Yourself and Others from Abuse, Age Cymru viewed 18 March 2015, . BBC News Wales 2011, ‘Age Cymru Calls for Legislation on Elderly Abuse Claims’, BBC News 14 November, viewed 18 March 2015, . Burke, MM & Laramie, JE 2000, Primary Care for the Older Adult, Mosby, London. Cox, R 1993, The Frail Elderly, Auburn House Paperback, London. Kling, A 2006, Crisis of Abundance, Cato, Washington, DC. NHS Wales 2015, Older People, NHS Wales viewed 18 March 2015, . Stewart, A 2011, Supporting Vulnerable Adults, Dunedin, Edinburgh. Read More