Canada, along with many other nations, is currently faced with an aging population. In Canada seniors are the fastest growing age group and make more then half of the population. And the numbers of older adults are higher in rural areas than in urban areas (Menec et al., 2015). Rural communities exist throughout Canada where there are large aging populations and higher number of children, but there are fewer working individuals as compared to urban communities (Menec et al., 2015). Many rural areas are aging more quickly than its urban counterparts as many choose to move to a rural community for the slow pace of life, attractive scenery and smaller community areas (Spina & Menec, 2015, Menec et al., 2015). Rural seniors challenged with issue …show more content…
In 2006, a study by Skinner and Rosenberg, as cited in Bascu et al., (2012) suggested that Canadian government hasn’t been able to address the challenges faced by rural seniors. So as more elderly people move to these locales, there are concerns about whether the communities can handle the needs of this vulnerable populace. The “age-friendliness” concept initiated by World Health Organization and Public Health of Canada also highlight the needs of the older people in rural communities given the high number of older people rural areas in a disadvantaged state (Spina & Menec, 2015). Thus, specific social situations exist for this demographic which will be discussed herein with a focus on factors such as, physical environment, accessibility to resources social isolation and health …show more content…
Thus, such communities will require the appropriate conditions to handle the needs of the aging. In terms of physical environment, this includes such features as safety, open spaces to promote walking, and age-appropriate leisure activities Seniors in rural communities identified the need of “walkable” sidewalks or accessible buildings as it not only supported older people in the form of physical exercise but also easier commute to attend social or personal needs (Public Health Canada, 2009). In a Study by Bascu et al, in 2012 about 40 percent of seniors experienced fall and related functional limitation. The study revealed that seniors’ safety and security concerns tend to relate more to a poor physical environment which adds to the number of accidents, including falls and complications. Seasonal conditions such as icy, wet pathways that hinder mobility increase fall and isolation. Creating a safe physical environment enables seniors to live independently and recreate personal identity in the face of the challenges of aging (Keating, Swindle & Fletcher, 2011). It may, however, be challenging to create this environment. An underlying issue is that funding is needed to ensure the availability of the resources
As you already mentioned, that Canada performs better on two health outcome measures, infant mortality rates, and life expectancy. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), indicated that life expectancy is associated with multiple factors outside the health care system, such as modifiable risk factors to health (smoking, alcohol consumption, nutrition habits, and physical activity), but access to high-quality primary care and treatments also plays an important role (OECD, 2017). Life expectancy in Canada is 81.5 years in 2011, which is about three years higher than in the United States (U.S.) according to the OECD statistics reported on Health at a Glance 2015 OECD Indicators (OECD, 2017).
This was a motivation behind identifying segregated seniors in the provincial groups of range A (Creston, Castlegar and Nelson), the focus was mapping the assets and exploring about their accessibility among the seniors of the range A. This research was embraced to distinguish best practices in reaching seniors, healthcare center and the communities where they get together and spent some quality time with each other celebrating happiness.
Beatty and Berdahl point out that policymakers and researchers have not paid enough attention to Abriginal seniors’ health care needs. Both authors seek to understand what health care challenges Aboriginal seniors face in Canada what policy methodologies are required to increase the wellbeing and health of Aboriginal seniors in order for them have a better quality of life and respect their culture and needs. Therefore, the authors suggest that policymakers should include four factors to take in considerations: socioeconomic situation, jurisdiction, underutilization of health services available in urban context and elder abuse.
I have identified the aging population (greater than 55 years of age) in Chatham/Kent, Ontario (in a community I am familiar and work within); a population on the rise and with minimal government and Ministry of Health support that enables seniors to maintain quality of life,
A baby boom is an abrupt rise in the population and it ends when a sudden drop in the number of births is examined. Baby boomers are people who were born between 1946-1965, after World War 2 when the economy reached a stable point. During this time period, more than 8.2 million babies were born, which is almost 412,000 a year. This took place in Canada when individuals were safe and comfortable with starting families. As the economy prospered and families were reunited, they desired more and more children.
Ever Since World War II, Earth’s population has increased by over 250 percent. As of now, Earth’s population is the highest it has ever been. A low fertility rate and an aging population can be the major cause for a dilemma relating to population, with negative social and economic effects. An aging population will be very hard to support financially from the working class, which is ever-declining. If Canada’s population continues to age, the working class will not be able to economically support seniors. The most rapidly growing demographic class in Canada happens to be seniors, and we have been seeing and predicting results of this growth. Since 1921, the population of older adults has more than doubled, and by 1926, it is predicted that one in five Canadians will be over sixty five. One in three Canadians will be older than the age fifty five in only four short years. Moreover, Canada spends billions of dollars helping older adults which includes providing old-age homes, healthcare…etc. Canada’s cost of healthcare is estimated to increase by 35 percent. Taxes in Canada will have to be raised if our publicly supported healthcare is to be secured. Still more, there are plenty more drawbacks to an aging population such as a decreasing working class and tax base. The demographic future puts the government sustainability in danger as taxes will not be coming in as freely as they would with a larger working class. Not only is Canada
Canada’s population is small compared to other countries, it is mostly seniors and the middle aged, barely any infants are being born and this is leading to barely increasing population. Since the population is increasing so slowly, most of our workforce is becoming seniors or late middle aged people. This suggests that the dependancy load is also being pushed back, falling on seniors more than teenagers. This makes it harder for youth to support themselves which in turn raises our poverty levels.
“ No other demographic event in U.S. history-save perhaps for the staggering death toll of the Civil War-has had greater significance than the Baby Boom”(Monhollon, xiii). The late 40’s and all through the 50’s was marked the baby boom era. During this time, soldiers were returning home from the war and were extremely excited to see their families. The Great Depression had delayed the increase of births in the 1930’s, but when World War II was over families wanted to take advantage of the fact that they had finally been reunited. Women started having more children and Canada’s birth rate skyrocketed.
Aging is inevitable, with age comes certain conditions, and diagnoses that affect healthy aging in Canadians. In Canada, and across the world, there are institutions that help care for people with these diagnoses. Nurses are one of the members of the health care team, and they help to try and reduce risks that can exist in aging Canadians. The purpose of this paper is to explore the risks of malnutrition in aging Canadians living in institutions who have vascular dementia.
The Movement While beginning this new millennium, Canadians are going through a time of dramatic social, economic and political change. The increasingly integrated global and economic markets along with the developments in technology have facilitated globalization and have made a huge impact on the lifestyles of Canadians (Canadian Institute of Actuaries, 2001)). With Canada’s aging population on the rise (Exhibit 1), it is obvious that different age cohorts will generate different trends.
The majority of developed nations have experienced several profound demographic changes over the last century—notably, an important decline in fertility rates paired with a substantial reduction of mortality, due in part to the changing nature of leading causes of death. In Canada, the total fertility rate was 3.5 children per woman in 1921 and fell to 1.61 in 2011 (Wadhera and Strachan 1993a; Statis- tics Canada 2013a). Life expectancy at birth for both sexes combined rose, from 57.0 years in 1921 to 81.7 in 2011 (Canadian Human Mortality Database 2014). Migration has also become an increasingly important contributor to population growth over this time period. Whereas less than 25 per cent of the Canadian population growth was due to migratory
Chapter 13 of the text: The Elderly and Retired, addresses the foundation of Canada’s social policies for seniors (those aged 65 and above in most circumstances), and the underlying issues and ideas that continue to pervade its framework. Effective and fair social policy regarding Canada’s seniors is of paramount importance now and in the immediate years to come, seeing as with the baby-boomer generation in the process of retiring, it is
It is evident that life expectancy rate - a major indicator of population health- varies amongst different tiers of socio-economic status. This is because, According to statistic Canada, Canadian women in the lowest income group experience life expectancy that is 3.2 years less than those in the highest income group whereas, Canadian men in the lowest income group, experience a life expectancy rate that is 4.7 years less than those in the highest income group(Mcmullin, J., Davis, L, 2010, Pg. 188). This goes to show that those with higher Socio-economic class get live longer compared to those with lower socio-economic class. Another social determinant of health outcomes amongst different groups of people is education. In Canada, a percentage
The CDC (2013) defines aging in place as “the ability to live in one’s own home and community safely, independently, and comfortably, regardless of age, income, or ability level” (Healthy places terminology). The idea of aging in place has received growing attention from many entities over the past decade. According to AARP (2014), one in three Americans is now 50 or older, and by 2030, one in five Americans will be 65 and older. Moreover, evidence exists that home evaluation and home modification interventions are effective in promoting home safety, positively influencing task performance, and reducing falls in the older adult population. Regarding health care practitioners and older adults, a variety of major public health problems exist
Identifying and addressing health disparities for the rural elderly has been a great challenge. Problems of the elderly who live alone in poverty in Baker County are considerable when additional factors such as increased physical limitations, medical needs, and social isolation are taken into account. As a vulnerable population, the rural elderly are affected by their low socioeconomic standing, lower literacy rates, declining health, declines in cognitive functioning and relative lack of available nearby health resources. Seniors often live on a fixed income from pensions or other retirement plans and social security. Additionally, inability to purchase affordable health insurance,