Well Being and Old-Age Poverty - Report Example

Introduction: Well being is a general term that is used to refer to the condition of a group of people, or an individual. For instance, well being can be used to refer to the psychological, social, economic, medical or spiritual state of an individual. It is important to understand that a high sense of well being is used to refer to refer to the positive experience that a group or an individual undergoes through. The positive experience can either be economic, social, spiritual, or even psychological. On the other hand, a low well being is associated with any negative occurrences that surround an individual. Mallon and Stevens (2012) denote that the notion of well being falls under two major categories, that is, an objective well being, and a subjective well being. Subjective wellbeing is developed from the ideas on how people feel and think about their lives. These ideas normally come from the cultures of the people, and their surrounding environment. This concept of subjective well being also involves how people feel that they are being viewed by other people within their environment. On this basis, subjective well being involves whether or not the desires and needs of people are fulfilled. Objective well being on the other hand involves the various requirements that people need to fulfill, for purposes of living a positive life (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2012). These requirements are always universal, and they are not determined by the environment, or the culture of people under consideration. It is important to understand that health forms part and parcel of the concept of well being. Jawad, (2012) denote that an individual’s good health, is an example of a positive well being, while an individual’s negative health, is an example of a negative well being. It is also important to understand that poverty and wealth can also act as a measure of the well being of an individual, and groups of people within the society. Poverty is associated with negative well being, while wealth is associated with positive well being. Harling (2010) denote that poverty and social exclusion has a great impact on the health and positive well being of the elderly people. Research indicates that the old population is more vulnerable to poverty and social exclusion, as opposed to the younger generations. This is because older people normally survive on pensions, and most of them do not always have some sources of generating income. This paper examines the effects of poverty amongst the aged population, and the various policies that government institutions have established for purposes of mitigating these effects. Social exclusion is also a problem that the aged normally within the society and it always has an impact of causing stress and depression amongst the aged. This paper analyzes the level upon which social exclusion affects the general well being of the aged, and the various policies that the government has initiated for purposes of mitigating on these effects. This paper takes a stand that poverty and social exclusion has a negative impact on the general well being of the aged within the society. Old Age Poverty and Social Exclusion: Ever since the beginning of the late 1980s, and early 1990s, policy makers and researchers have acknowledged that old age poverty is a serious problem in the United Kingdom, and Western Europe. Chandrasekhar and Mukhopadhyay (2010) denote that social exclusion is a concept that comes with poverty, and on this basis, it is difficult to separate the two. Social Exclusion is a concept that originated in the 1980s, from the social policy discourses of the French. Cook (2010) define poverty as the inability of an individual to access material resources, and on most occasions these materials is income. Social exclusion on the other hand is a concept that refers to an individual being shut out from accessing the economic, political, and social resources of a society. It is important to understand that during old age, the aged are always vulnerable to the various changes in the amount of income that they get. Cook and Halsall (2012) denote that on most occasions, the income of these people is always low. It is important to understand that policy makers and researcher are in consensus on the existence of a relationship between poverty and old age in the United Kingdom. Benfield, (2010) denote that people living in pensions are more likely to live a poor life, as compared to people who are employed and living in salary. In short, scholars are of the opinion that the aged are more vulnerable to poverty, when compared to young people, who are employed and living on salaries. Cattell (2011) further denote that widows are also at a greater risk of suffering from poverty and social exclusion in Britain. In fact, research indicates that areas that are always considered prosperous normally have a large population of middle-income families (Parker and Petesch, 2010). This research further indicates that locations that are considered poor normally have a large number of widowed women, and the aged people (Walker and Marie, 2012). It is important to understand that the department of pensions and work has recognized this problem, and through their research in 2005, the department denoted that there has been a decline in the number of old age poverty for the past decade (Wattles, 2013). In as much as there is a decline in pensioner’s poverty, over the last decade, scholars denote that more than a quarter of pensioners in the United Kingdom continue to live in poverty during the 21st century (HM Government, 2010). This therefore means that a significant number of old people in the United Kingdom continue to be socially excluded in various aspects of their social lives, which include politics, economics, and other social activities (Stevens, 2012). It is important to denote that one of the effects of old age poverty is inability of these people to have an access to quality health care services. This is an aspect of social exclusion, and it is further accelerated by the fact that most of the aged people are unable to afford a car. Because of their inability to own a car, the old are unable to quickly access some social facilities such as medical facilities, shopping centers, or even sports centers and facilities. This affects the manner in which these people are able to socialize with one another, as well as access very important services, such as health services. Scholars denote that due to poverty, old people are not able to get an access to medical treatments and care that are effective in controlling and curbing the various illnesses and diseases that these people suffer from (Taylor-Gooby, 2012). The aged are always vulnerable to diseases such as hypertension, cancer, diabetes, and even trauma or stress. On this basis, the government of UK has come up with a series of welfare programs and policies aimed at helping the aged people to get adequate treatment and care (Department of Health, 2009). It is important to denote that because of poverty, the aged are always unable to afford fuel costs that can help them to stay warm during cold seasons. For instance, statistic denotes that in the periods of 2010 to 2011, the number of people who suffered from Hypothermia was 1876 patients (Martin, 2014). Of this number, three quarters were old people, surviving on pension, that is, 1407 people. Hypothermia is a disease that emanates because of cold living conditions. Because of rising fuel, the costs of fuel, the aged are unable to afford fuel that can help them to heat their homes. Martin (2014) denotes that statistics emanating from the department of health shows that in 2006/ 2007, the number of old people who suffered from Hypothermia was 633 people. This people were over the age of 60 years, and they increased in the periods of 2010/ 2011. The number stood at 1,396, which was an increase of about 120% (Martins, 2014). This increase emanated because of rising costs of fuel, which was out of reach of the aged people. This people are not only able to afford fuel, but they are also unable to afford food (News, 2009). Statistics indicate that one out of every five old people over the ages of 60 years normally skip on meals, for purposes of saving money, for food (News, 2009). Statistics further indicates that 2/5th of these people normally struggle to afford basic items such as clothing, and shelter. Statistics depicting old age poverty in the UK is on a positive note. This is because the statistics show a general decline in old age poverty. For instance, between the periods of 1998 to 1999, the percentage of pensioners who were living under poverty was 29% (The Poverty Site, 2014). The periods of 2005 to 2006, depicted a significant drop pensioners living under poverty. This number dropped to 17%, of pensioners who were living under poverty. It is important to understand that between the periods of 1999 to 2005, there weren’t any significant changes in the number of aged people living under poverty (The Poverty Site, 2014). The drop of pensioners living under poverty occurred because of government policies that were aimed at tackling the problems of old age poverty. Government Policies and old age poverty: Barber (2013) denote that for purposes of minimizing the effects of poverty, and social exclusion, the British government has initiated a program referred to as the care and support program. Under this program, the government aims at assisting the aged people on accessing quality health care services, without them losing their savings, or selling their homes. Under this policy, the government intends to create a cap on the personal care costs to the tune of 75,000 pounds (UKGOV, 2014). The government also intends to provide financial help, to people who have properties which are less than 123,000 pounds. This will only apply to the aged people, and those who are unable to acquire income, due to a variety of reasons. The government intends to introduce these policies as law, before the year 2017. When fully implemented, the government believes that these laws will play a great role in reducing poverty, amongst the aged people. This will in turn lead to an improvement on the well being of the aged people (Vedres, 2012). This is a policy developed by the department of health, on the 11th of February, 2013. Another policy is the pension credit policy that was introduced in 2003 by Gordon Brown, who was by then the chancellor of exchequer. This policy has passed through a number of changes, aimed at improving the benefits that pensioners acquire through it. Brown and Frosch (2012) denote that ever since the introduction of this policy, a number of older people have managed to came out of poverty, due to the benefits associated with this policy. The pension credit has two major elements, namely, the savings credit, and the guarantee credit. Under the savings credit policy, the government gives pensioners who have reached an age of 65 years some money, based on the amount of pension they receive. It is important to understand that the higher the pensions an individual receives, the higher the savings credit that the same person receives from the government (Meyer and Sullivan, 2013). It is important to understand that the aim of the government in introducing this policy is to encourage people to contribute more funds to their pension schemes. The guarantee credit on the other is the amount of money that the government pays to pensioners, once they reach a certain age (Schneider, Gruman and Coutts, 2012). The minimum age of claiming this money, is on people who have reached the ages of 60 years. Horsfall (2012) denote that the government aims at increasing the age of those eligible to this benefit to 65 years of age, and this should happen before the year 2020. It is important to understand that the major intention of the government in regard to these policies is to improve the well fare of the aged, reduce poverty, and help them to access quality and good health care treatment. It is important to understand that without these policies, the rate of poverty amongst the aged population in the United Kingdom would be on an increase (Potter, 2010). Other welfare policies in the United Kingdom are, state pensions, career allowances, rent rebates, etc. Trends in the individual and societal responsibility to the health care needs of the aged: In a bid to help the aged population to access quality health care, new trends in the provision of health care services have emerged. Scholars denote that medical institutions and state agencies encourage the development of home carers. This people should have the responsibility of taking care of the aged population in their home areas. Under this concept of home carers, Alcock (2012) advocate for the reliance of family members, and close friends associates. This is as opposed to professional institutions, charged with the responsibility of taking care of the sickly old population. It is important to understand that family members would play a great role in catering for the needs of the elderly. This is because they better understand the various needs of these elderly people, and how to satisfy the needs under consideration. For instance, Parr (2011) denotes that family members are able to better understand the various ailments that their elderly patient suffers from, and this is because, family members have always been interacting with these aged population on a social manner. Perrewé and Halbesleben (2013) denote that the government should play a role in encouraging the development of family home carers, and this is because it is very affordable for the aged people who live under poverty. The only expenses that they will incur, involves buying of medicines, and other medical facilities. Studies reveal that, the evolution of family home carers has significantly contributed to a positive well being of the aged population. This is because the health care of the aged has improved, because of the affordability of the family home carer system (Stevens, 2011). On this basis, the aged are able to acquire good and better services in health care, especially, during their recovery process. Recommendation: For purposes of addressing the problems that the aged face in the United Kingdom, there is a need of creating a liaison office that will have the responsibility of collecting information regarding the various problems that the aged face. This office will also have the responsibility of collecting information and data on how to solve the various problems that the aged suffer from in the United Kingdom. The information collected will only emanate from the old people, and the people who interact with constant basis. This will help the government to create efficient policies that will have the capability of solving this problem of old age poverty, and their social exclusion. Conclusion: In conclusion, the concept of well being and health goes hand in hand. Well being is a concept that generally identifies all issues that surround the day to day living of an individual. These issues include social, political, health and economic issues. Well being can either be positive or negative. A positive well being occurs when the individual under consideration derives satisfaction on whatever issues that they undertake. This might include, achieving success in their careers, having good health, and living a prosperous life. It is important to understand that poverty is an example of a negative well being. This is because poverty limits the actions of an individual, and how he or she intends to live. Poverty amongst the aged is a social problem that the British government aims to fight. This is because poverty normally leads to serious social consequences such as in ability to access various services from the government and the society. This is an aspect referred to as social exclusion. It is also important to understand that poverty amongst the aged, always results to the inability of the older people to access better health care facilities during their old age periods. On this basis, the British government has initiated a variety of programs aimed at protecting the aged against poverty, and helping them access better health care facilities. These programs include the pension credit program, and the care and support programs. Bibliography: Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2012). Why nations fail: the origins of power, prosperity, and poverty. New York: Crown Publishers. Alcock, P. 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