In 2017 Age Uk published a great paper on current care for older people in England. It highlights some key issues when it comes to caring for our retired population. Full access to the paper can be found here:
https://www.ageuk.org.uk/documents/EN-GB/For-professionals/Research/The_Health_and_Care_of_Older_People_in_England_2016.pdf?dtrk=true
If you're interested in the full details i'd highly recommend you read it! It had a rather profound effect on me. It really hit a nerve and I wanted to put some of the key points down on paper!
Some initial statistics...
It is estimated that by their late 80's, over half of the population will be considered frail and will need help with daily tasks
The numbers of older people attending A & E departments have risen by 20% in the last 5 years
65% of hospital admissions are people over 65
It is estimated over that nearly 1.2 million people over 65 who aren't receiving the help they need with daily tasks - This represents a 48% increase since 2010!!
Nearly 1 in 8 older people live with unmet needs
These stats start to show a trend... we're living longer, physically deteriorating, requiring more and more help that we're not receiving. This is having an impact on our own well-being, hospital admissions, re-admissions and an inability for our current system to meet all of our changing needs.
Furthermore...
It is estimated there are two million carers over 65! 417,000 of these are over 80!
Age UK analysis shows over 37% of carers over 80 years old are providing more than 20 hours of care per week... with 76% of these reporting regular pain or discomfort!
I could go on all day!
So what's the answer?! Obviously we could talk about government funding, and this is a very serious issue, but that's not my area of expertise. I'm interested in pro-active management. As a Physiotherapist we promote self-management within our patients as often as we're able. Exercise and education are at the top of the list.
One of the issues we see in our older population is the expectation that Physical Deterioration is inevitable. Whilst I agree that physically things do change as we age it is not the presence of deterioration that is the issue, but the expectation. If you're resigned to the fact you'll get weaker, more frail and therefore less independent, then the likelihood is you will!
Studies have shown clear links between older peoples' attitudes towards ageing and poor health. We use misleading terms such as 'wear and tear' to describe natural processes that occur with age. This implies the more you do, the more you 'wear-out' your joints and tissues, something that has been shown not to be the case time and time again!
However...
Google the benefits of exercise for the elderly and you'll be hit with pages of research! Regular exercise has been shown to do the following:
Increase strength
Increase muscle mass
preserve (or increase) bone density
Improve independence
reduce the risk of osteoporosis
Improve cardiovascular function
Improve signs and symptoms linked to of heart disease, arthritis and type 2 diabetes
Reduced depression
Improved quality of sleep
Improved outlook on life
So my question is this... Is it the effects of ageing we're battling? Or is it our perception of the effects of ageing?!
We're getting better at promoting exercise for the masses, yes. But are we addressing peoples' attitudes? Their fears and apprehensions?
Are we going to assume the predicted trends in our ageing population are inevitable or are we going to try to change them?
I know where I sit...
Matt