The Social Dilemma Encountered by the Elderly - Term Paper Example

Social Dilemmas Encountered by the Elderly A variety of problems are usually encountered by people belonging to diverse agegroups including the elderly. The elderly is confronted by different dilemmas which can be attributed to a variety of aspects and contributing factors. One of the problems faced by the elderly is the social problems of specific sorts. To better understand this, one must address and explore the problem to gain a better insight on this predicament that could have an impact not only on the individual alone but also the society. Keywords: social problem, dilemmas, predicament, elderly The Social Dilemma Encountered by the Elderly Introduction A variety of problems are usually encountered by people belonging to diverse age groups including the elderly. The elderly is confronted by different dilemmas which can be attributed to a variety of aspects and contributing factors. One of the problems faced by the elderly is the social problems of specific sorts. When referring to social problems of the aged, people are usually referring to particular practical problems encountered most commonly among older people (Gormally, 1992). One of the social problems encountered by the elderly is abuse stemming from a variety of reasons such as the lack of quality provisional care that could lead to depression. This paper endeavors to tackle abuse as one of the social dilemmas faced by elderly people based on a variety of articles and studies previously conducted and the impacts brought about by this predicament. Related Literature Review The elderly are the nation’s fastest growing population; it is estimated that, by 2030, approximately twenty percent or 20% of the U.S. population will be age sixty-five or older as given emphasis by the article entitled, How Well Prepared are Texas Dental Hygienists to Recognize and Report Elderly Abuse?, which is written by Murphree et al. (2002). The authors also stressed that while Americans of all ages are at risk for family violence, the elderly are especially vulnerable; it was also highlighted by Murphree et al. (2002) the number of individuals who are victims of elder abuse has reached epidemic proportions. Moreover, statistics on elder abuse differ greatly, but studies from around the United States estimate that between seven hundred thousand or 700,000 and 2.5 million individuals are abused annually (Murphree et al., 2002). This paper written by Murphree et al. (2002) aimed in correlating the identification of elderly abuse by dentists during dental visits. According to Murphree et al. (2002), the average elderly person makes two dental visits per year. Frequent dental visits are usually necessary due to the increased rate of periodontal disease in the elderly population (Murphree et al., 2002). Therefore, as Murphree et al. (2002) reiterated that dentists and dental hygienists which encompasses a part of the health profession is likely to see these individuals on a regular basis and would be in a good position to determine and report elder abuse and provide resources to the victim. Moreover, two-thirds of injuries sustained in older adults can be easily found during a routine dental exam, and over one-half of the injuries occur in the head and neck region (Murphree et al., 2002). In all the fifty states in the United States of America, dentists and dental hygienists are mandated by law to report all cases of suspected elder abuse; however, studies have revealed that dentists, dental hygienists and other health care professionals are neither comfortable nor knowledgeable about determining and reporting suspected elder abuse (Murphree et al., 2002). The authors of this paper also implied that while severe abuse is rarely seen in a dental office, dental professionals miss the more subtle and long-term cases of abuse. Furthermore, dentists with an increased level of abuse education do report more suspected cases of abuse; however, there are no studies concentrating dental hygienists’ education and reporting of elder abuse (Murphree et al., 2002). Elder abuse as defined by Murphree et al. (2002) is a general term that covers physical, psychological and sexual abuse, caregiver and self-neglect, and financial exploitation, and it is not typical for elders to be victims of varied categories of abuse simultaneously. Likewise, it transpires in every racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic group and can happen in institutional settings and by family members or other caregivers (Murphree et al., 2002). Murphree et al. (2002) highlighted that elders who live with friends or family are three times more likely to be abused than those who live alone or in nursing home facilities. In particular, females of an advanced age who are unable to live alone due to inadequate income and who reside with family members are the most likely to be abused (Murphree et al., 2002). No differences were discovered in figures of abuse and neglect for minority and white elderly; between the very old whose age is over seventy-five years old and the younger old whose age ranges from sixty-five to seventy-four years old, nor related to race, ethnicity, religion or socioeconomic backgrounds; moreover, other studies revealed that no difference in rate of abuse in rural or urban settings, nor was the gender of the caregiver an apparent risk factor in recognizing probable causes (Murphree et al., 2002). Murphree at al. (2002) also noted that many older adults are hesitant to convey accounts of abuse, especially if it is by a family member. Elder abuse victims tend to condemn themselves, have low self-esteem, and are afraid of reprisal by the family member (Murphree et al., 2002). Furthermore, the elder will not report abuse if it means placement in a nursing home rather than remaining at home; likewise, an elder’s refusal of intervention is an important barrier to elder abuse prevention (Murphree et al., 2002). Murphree et al. (2002) pointed out that although currently there is no federal statute governing elder abuse, all fifty states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws requiring mandatory reporting by health professionals for suspected abuse. These laws entail conveying of suspected elder abuse, even against the elder’s wishes, and protect whistleblowers from civil and criminal accountability (Murphree at al., 2002). Moreover, each state has formulated some form of an Adult Protective Services or APS program to encourage reporting cases of suspected abuse; likewise, APS agencies in all fifty states are bestowed with the power to investigate the mistreatment of elders and render services to facilitate solutions in abusive and neglectful situations (Murphree et al., 2002). The study conducted by Murphree et al. (2002) gathered data via a cross-sectioned mailed survey of a random sample of all dental hygienists practicing in the state of Texas assuring them of the anonymity of their responses. This study was beneficial for the fact that it was able to identify the level of knowledge of dental hygienists and dentists regarding elder abuse. Moreover, it was able to commence societal awareness regarding elder abuse. However, it was a sad fact that the results of the findings revealed that the knowledge of abuse of dentists and dental hygienists were generally poor as stated in the study by Murphree et al. (2002). Elder abuse refers to a range of actions, by someone known to an elder person, in their own home or in a care setting, that harms them as defined by McCreadie et al. (1998) in another article entitled, General Practitioners’ knowledge and experience of the abuse of older people in the Community: report of an exploratory research study in the inner-London borough of Tower hamlets. These actions cover aggressive and violent behavior, emotional cruelty, the theft of money or property, forced involvement in sexual activity and the neglect of basic needs (McCreadie et al., 1998). According to McCreadie et al. (1998), prevalence studies are limited, but a recommended figure of approximately five percent or 5% for all types of abuses in the community is presented by most studies, with higher figures of almost forty percent or 40% were reported for some selected samples. The research took place in Tower Hamlets, an area characterized by social and economic deprivation and racially and culturally different populations which encompasses a vast majority of elderly people or termed as the older population at a figure of about ninety three percent or 93% is white (McCreadie et al., 1998). Broad-spectrum practice covers a range of settings from purpose-built group practices to single-handed surgeries in poor quality accommodation wherein there are proportionately fewer one- or two-handed practices than in England as a whole, and proportionately more five- and six-handed ones (McCreadie et al., 1998). The principal research tool was a self-completed questionnaire, formulated especially for the research conducted by McCreadie et al. (1998), as previous work was limited. In addition to direct questions about abuse, using standard definitions, the general practitioners were asked about specific incidents that, from research knowledge, either describe an abusive situation or a circumstance that may provoke or stimulate abuse (McCreadie et al., 1998). This study was proven valuable for the reason that it was discovered what types of abuse were evident such as psychological abuse which is defined as continuous emotional behavior such as bullying that harms the older person, followed by neglect, financial abuse, physical and sexual abuse (McCreadie et al., 1998). Moreover, the study showed that the general practitioners were most likely to know of a case through their own diagnosis or through a third party rather than by the abused person or the abuser telling them (McCreadie et al., 1998). However, the drawback of this study was it was not able to provide an indication of how many abuse cases a General Practitioner could expect to have on his or her list (McCreadie et al., 1998). Moreover, prevalence data are extremely limited in the said study (McCreadie et al., 1998). The authors of this study concluded that the combination of GP cases, or risk situations, and the variations in response, with their endorsement of the need for training, supports the view of members of the medical profession here and abroad of the primary significance of boosting doctors’ awareness of the likelihood of abuse. Since abuse was the main focus of this paper as one of the social problems that confronted the elderly, the provision of care was also given consideration as neglect was classified under abuse in the aforementioned study. The study conducted by Gilleard et al. (1984) entitled, Caring for the Elderly Mentally Infirm at home: a survey of the supporters, involved an interview of a sample of 129 supporters caring for an elderly mentally infirm relative repeatedly referred to psychogeriatric daycare services. Data was derived on the predicaments encountered by their dependant, the degree of their participation, the amount of formal and informal support obtained, the subjective strain and burden reported, and their expectations of their capacity to continue in the caring role (Gilleard et al., 1984). The authors of this study made an attempt to utilize this data to elucidate the degree of strain and some of the determinants of strain encompassed in caring. The results derived by Gilleard et al. (1984) implied that the sex of the dependant and the age of the supporter together with the number of predicaments faced all contributed to the reported level of strain. The amount of accessible community support, whether formal or informal, does not seem to alleviate crucially to the strain placed on the principal carers (Gilleard et al., 1984). This study was beneficial for it was able to tackle the contributing factors that may influence carers in rendering care to the elderly; however, the limitation of this study was it did not discuss the possible solutions that the carers deemed necessary to address the issues that they have unleashed. Moreover, if such issues were not addressed, this may result to the quality of care provided that could lead to neglect which is an apparent type of elderly abuse. Whenever the elderly are abused, they are reluctant to report the abuse that they have experienced; hence, sometimes, they may manifest depression at times. Depression as defined by Wasylenki (1980) in his article entitled, Depression in the Elderly, may refer to a mood, a symptom or a syndrome. In addition, Wasylenki (1980) reiterated that a depressed mood describes feelings of sadness, disappointment, discouragement and related emotions. A symptom depression refers to mood variations related with other psychiatric disorders, medical diseases or drug effects (Wasylenki, 1980). The syndrome of depression has cognitive, affective, vegetative and motor components wherein thought processes are slow, and thought content is morbid and guilt-ridden; likewise, the affect may be despairing and hopeless (Wasylenki, 1980). Furthermore, Wasylenki (1980) stressed that appetite, sleep, weight and energy are disturbed, and the patient shows either agitated or retarded motor behavior. Wasylenki (1980) also emphasized that the classic depressive triad involves intricacy in thinking, misery and motor retardation. The said article was valuable in the sense that it was able to give a review to be able to outline the knowledge about the depression in the elderly and it was able to point out that failure to diagnose depression can be an obstacle to treatment. This article however, did not cite other alternatives if such therapies enumerated for treating the depression experienced by the elderly are proven ineffective. Conclusion There are a variety of problems encountered by the elderly and the social problems such as abuse are apparent in the society. Neglect is considered as one type of abuse which may result from the lack of quality provisional care which could result to depression in the process. Hence, the author of this paper, if given the opportunity to formulate social policies would aimed at creating a law that would facilitate strict implementation of the reporting of elderly abuse. The author of this paper would also create ways to encourage not only those in the healthcare profession but also the members of the society to report cases of elderly abuse through incentives or rewards whenever a suspected case is identified and proven to be true. Moreover, the author of this paper will endeavor to create more support systems and facilities that would render quality holistic care to the elderly and promote their safety at all times as well. Furthermore, laws regarding punishment of those who abuse the elderly will be strictly executed. References Gilleard, C.J., Gilleard, E., Gledhill, K., & Whittick, J. (1984). Caring for the Elderly Mentally Infirm at home: a survey of the supporters. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 38, 319-325. Gormally, L. (1992). The Dependent Elderly: Autonomy, justice and quality of care. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. McCreadie, C., Bennett, G., & Tinker, A. (1998). General Practitioners’ knowledge and experience of the abuse of older people in the Community: report of an exploratory research study in the inner-London borough of Tower hamlets. British Journal of General Practice, 48, 1687-1688. Murphree, K.E., Campbell, P.R., Gutmann, M.E., Plichta, S.B., Nunn, M.E., McCann, A.L., & Gibson, G. (2002). How Well Prepared are Texas Dental Hygienists to Recognize and Report Elderly Abuse?. Journal of Dental Education, 66 (11), 1274-1280. Wasylenki, D. (1980). Depression in the Elderly. CMA Journal, 122, 525-532. Read More