This blog will examine both biological and social aspects of aging across Asian and American countries. Each country only forms a page of this collective book we call our World. These societies vary so much from each other that travelling is essential to put yourself in other people’s shoes, to understand the diverse backgrounds that these people are coming from. I am an international student from Islamabad, Pakistan and moved to California in 2009 to begin studying at USC. The fact that “family” is not the essential basic unit of society was one of the bigger culture shocks I experienced.
On average, young Americans report becoming financially independent from their parents at a median age of 20. (AESC & AARP Research). These young adults grow up and remain independent while their parents require more support with increasing age. This is where Nursing Facilities enter the equation, by playing a semi-reliable part in taking care of the otherwise unattended elderly. In 2007, the total number of nursing home residents in certified nursing facilities was 1,368,230. A breakdown of this number indicates that New York led in the number of residents with 108,749, followed by California (97,530), Texas (89,698), Pennsylvania (79,422), Ohio (77,751), Illinois (76,065) and Florida (69,978). (Rubins) The breakdown statistics denote an obvious trend that more people are admitted into nursing homes in states that are usually bustling and fast paced, meaning people do not have time to take care of the aged.
One disadvantage of Nursing Institutions is that most of them provide the elderly with a very monotonous lifestyle that is not beneficial for their health, both physically and mentally. A study suggested that the prevalence of depression in the nursing home population is very high. Whichever way defined, the prevalence rates found were three to four times higher than in the community-dwelling elderly. (Jongenelis 2004) Facts like this highlight the errors in current generic nursing home systems, and the changes that can be made to improve on them.
References:
K. Jongenelis, A.M. Pot, A.M.H. Eisses, A.T.F. Beekman, H. Kluiter, M.W. Ribbe,Prevalence and risk indicators of depression in elderly nursing home patients: the AGED study, 2004.
AESC & AARP, Preparing for Their Future - A Look at the Financial State of Gen X and Gen Y
Statistics on Nursing Homes and Their Residents,
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