What does graying of america mean

It is highest for Hispanics, for both males and females, and lower for blacks than for whites or Hispanics. Figure 3. Life expectancy at birth, by race and Hispanic origin: United States, and Statistics from the U.

Census Bureau reveal that the and over age group is the fastest-growing age group in America. According to the Census Bureau and AgingStats. But during this same time, the over population grew from just over , in to 5.

Figure 4. The elderly population is projected to grow significantly in the coming decades. The rising cost of health care is a source of financial vulnerability to older adults.

Vaccines are especially important for older adults. Things that contribute to longer life expectancies include eating a healthy diet that is rich in plants and nuts.

Staying physically active, not smoking, and consuming moderate amounts of alcohol, tea, or coffee are also reported to be beneficial to leading a long life. Other recommendations include being conscientious, prioritizing your happiness, avoiding stress and anxiety, and having a strong social support network. Establishing a consistent sleep schedule and maintaining between hours of sleep per night is also beneficial.

A major reason a person will statistically live longer once they reach an older age is simply that they have made it this far without anything killing them. Also, there appears to be several factors which may explain changes in life expectancy in the United States and around the world—h ealth conditions are better, m any diseases have been eliminated or better controlled through medicine, working conditions are better and b etter lifestyles choices are being made.

Such factors significantly contribute to longer life expectancies. Sometimes referred to as mortality tables, death charts or actuarial life tables, these life expectancy tables are strictly statistical, and do not take into consideration any personal health information or lifestyle information. Take a look at life expectancy tables on the Life Expectancy Calculators website. Life expectancy is also used in describing the physi cal quality of life.

Quality of life is the general well-being of individuals and societies, outlining negative and positive features of life. Quality of life considers lif e satisfaction, including everything from physical health, family, education, employment, wealth, safety, security, freedom, religious beliefs, and the environment.

Another vexing question is how well America's consumer-driven economy will hold up when so many of us are living frugally on fixed incomes. How about health care? By , U. Some are also bracing for a shortage of up to , doctors by This problem was complicated by Congress capping Medicare reimbursement to teaching hospitals for each resident in , when there was talk of a doctor glut.

What other problems are ahead? Cities will need to adjust their infrastructure for older people: Crosswalk timers will have to be reset to give them more time to get across the street, and far more curb cutouts for walkers and wheelchairs will need to be installed.

The number of homebound, isolated seniors will dramatically rise, contributing to an existing loneliness epidemic. The isolation, ironically, will be worse in the sidewalk-less, car-oriented suburbs America created to make Baby Boomer childhoods so utopian. What happens to tens of millions of suburban residents when they're 85 and unable to drive or walk to stores, community centers, or doctors? Skip to header Skip to main content Skip to footer Analysis.

Globally, the share of the population aged 65 years or over increased from 6 per cent in to 9 per cent in Nightmare disorder. Experiencing trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD , which can both contribute to nightmares, can also cause a fear of sleep. The variety and unpredictability of chronic disease conditions also mean that the response to the individual must be highly personalized, flexible, and integrated.

A continuum of care must address the whole person, including living arrangements, social situations, and chronic conditions and illnesses. It must be able to react appropriately and quickly as circumstances change and must be designed to provide continuity of care over extended periods of time.

This response will require those of us whose perspectives are primarily hospital-focused or nursing home-focused to make substantial adjustments—to create a truly person-centered approach to care delivery. Integration of providers. Integration need not mean common ownership, but it does mean a high degree of coordination across providers of care. It requires an inclusive understanding of the term "provider" to encompass such entities as senior housing, adult day care, geriatric assessment, home care, adult foster care, congregate meals, telemedicine, and all the high and low technology services that are being developed in health and human service organizations.

New organizational systems. A continuum of care cannot be implemented in seriatim. It will require not only a sufficient configuration of providers but also new governance structures, coordinated clinical care, integrated information systems, and innovative quality improvement mechanisms. In coordinating our clinical care, we need to build on what we have learned about case management—the good and the bad—and find models most appropriate to our organizations and the persons we serve.

A care manager or team of managers is critical to the care process. Leveraging community strengths. As noted earlier, most aging and chronically ill persons are not in our hospitals or nursing homes, but in their own homes. If we are to help serve the growing aging populations, we need to be sure we do not supplant existing informal community structures that support them.

Rather, we want to support community resources. New financing systems. The fragmentation of financing and, in particular, the usually rigid distinction between "medical" care services and "personal" care services must be overcome.

The current patchwork of coverages, eligibility requirements, and funding sources-both governmental and private sector-often presents an impenetrable maze to both the patient and to those who seek to help. Integrated financing will require us to better understand the true cost of care delivery and to pool funding sources from the various payers.

Finally, we need to find a way to address the needs of the great majority of elderly who cannot afford long-term care insurance but are too well off financially to qualify for Medicaid unless they impoverish themselves. A Public Policy Agenda The challenges we in Catholic health and social services face in coordinating and collaborating services, in part, reflect problems in the structure and funding of state and federal programs.

Medicare, Medicaid, community health centers, and programs for the aging are funded by a variety of agencies that have little connection to one another and often have little flexibility. The challenges we face also reflect the lack of adequate public funding for the needs of the elderly.

Improved flexibility and coordination of public programs, while essential, are not enough. Inventiveness and creativity can only stretch limited resources so far. Simply stated, federal and state governments must allocate more financial resources if we are to have even a minimum of care, let alone a continuum of care, for our growing senior population. Public funding of current elder care services is inadequate.

Nursing homes, for example, are severely underpaid by most Medicaid programs. As a result, many nursing homes cannot afford sufficient numbers of well-trained staff to provide optimal service. As Monsignor Charles J.