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Aging Population In Health Care

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The Aging Population and Their Effects on Health Care Today

According to the Institute of Medicine, the population of baby boomers aged 85 and older will eventually need acute, primary, long-term care, and this will increase the demand for this type of care five-fold in twenty years (“Caring”). This statistic raises multiple questions about how the healthcare industry will provide appropriate care for this growing group of people. Elder populations are more prone to physical and mental illnesses and may require multiple medications. This implies that highly trained and educated workers are needed to properly care for this generation. Concerns about lack of workforce, proper care for the growing population, and reliability on public assistance …show more content…
The current demand for workers in geriatric care is even higher than the demand for workers in healthcare in general due to elderly people living longer. In fact, millions of workers will be needed by 2030 just keep the current worker to population ratio balanced (“Caring”). The geriatric care field will need an abundance of workers in a short amount of time to meet the demand for care in this realm. According the the Eldercare Workforce Alliance, by 2018, the amount of direct caregivers will need to soar beyond one million additional workers to battle the current shortage (“Geriatrics”). The population is guaranteed to rise in a short amount of time as a result of the baby boomer population. Soon, along with the current elderly population, the group of individuals born after World War II will need assistance, and they will essentially need it all at …show more content…
Issues with a lack of workforce to properly care for the baby boomers and current aging groups will need highly trained, educated caretakers. The amount of those studying for gerontology related careers is on the decline. Even graduated nursing, medical, and pharmaceutical students did not spend as much time or had a great deal of experience in this field. Also, the intensity of care the elderly need differs greatly from those who do not suffer from chronic illness or psychological problems related to their condition. Older patients may need more care related to a disease that cannot be managed on their own, or they may need assistance doing daily activities because they’re no longer able to. Caring, understand, and compassionate workers will effectively fill the spots of those who care for the elderly that can no longer do so for themselves. Lastly, having enough money to cover care costs may cause problems for the elderly. Medicare and Medicaid, for example, cover some costs, but those not covered are expected to come out-of-pocket from the patient. If that patient never saved money for future health problems, they may not have the funds to do this. Instead, other family members or friends might have to help them take care of bills. The future of healthcare and the elderly population will see many challenges. Implementing and requiring more classes toward gerontology may solve

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