chapter 12 social work with older adults

Copyright © 2012 Cengage Learning, Brooks/Cole Publishing

Chapter 12:

Older Adults: Needs and Services

Empowering Programs with Resourcesthat Enhance Social Work Education


Social Work: A Competency-Oriented Education

Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)

- Defines Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAs)

- Developed 10 “Core Competencies” and 41 Related “Practice Behaviors”

Every student should master the Practice Behaviors and Core Competencies before completing the program


Resources Aligned to EPAS 2008

The Textbook –

- “Helping Hands” icons call attention to content that relates to Practice Behaviors and Competencies

- “Competency Notes” at the end of the chapter help put the Practice Behaviors and Competencies in practical context


Resources Aligned to EPAS 2008 (cont’d)

The Practice Behaviors Workbook developed

with the text provides assignable exercises that assist in mastering the Practice Behavior and Competencies

Additional on-line resources can be found at: www.cengage.com/socialwork



Framing the issueThe number and percentage of people reaching old

age are greater than they have ever been throughout

recorded history

EP 2.1.3a, 2.1.7b


Physiological aging• Growth and physical maturation continue

throughout the life cycle• Scientists have not yet determined why we age• Social workers who specialize in working with older

adults should be sensitive to physiological changes

that are typical processes of growing old

EP 2.1.7b


Theories of aging• Continuity theory• Activity theory• Developmental theory• Exchange theory

EP 2.1.7a


Retirement

• No universal definition exists• Income is usually drastically reduced • Future of the Social Security system is a concern• One’s health declines with age • Most older adults rely primarily on Medicare • More research is needed

EP 2.1.1a, 2.1.3a, 2.1.7b


Older adults and their families• Most older married couples express general

satisfaction with their marriages• When older adults encounter health problems they

often turn to their adult children for support• Families continue to be a viable resource for older

adults

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Care-giving• Who are care-givers?• Economics of care-giving• Impact of care-giving• Care-giving and work• Care-giving and health

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Death and dying

• Every culture shapes attitudes toward death as well as life

• Most of us are not prepared for coping with either the death of others or our own death

• Hospice care/living wills• “Voluntary” and “involuntary” euthanasia have

introduced controversy into the dying process

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.8a


Aging and mental health

• The mental health of older adults is not appreciably

different from that of the population in general• Dramatic changes in the mental health of

individuals are seldom caused by the aging

process alone

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Aging and the ecological/systems perspective

The way that an individual interacts within the

environment strongly influences that individual’s

mental health and perspectives about growing old

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Aging and the environment

• Social isolation and loneliness often appear to produce maladaptive behaviors

• Overmedication can cause memory loss, disorientation, or loss of vigor or appetite

• Depression may be caused by bereavement, anxiety related to income, a limited social network, relocation, or health concerns

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Income security concerns• Having enough money to live on • Not being able to work to supplement Social

Security income• Uncertain future of Social Security benefits • Having enough money to meet support and

social services needs

EP 2.1.1a, 2.1.9b


Health and health care services• Developing health problems in later life • Chronic diseases in old age• Refusal to seek treatment until health conditions

become severe or life threatening• Cost of prescription medicines• Government’s role in providing health care for the

aged

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Abuse and neglect

• Little is known about the abuse and neglect of theelderly

• Self-neglect is perhaps the most common• Abuse usually occurs when the older adult is living

with a relative• Adult protective services are designed to shield

older adults from harm

EP 2.1.7b


Long-term care

• Only 5% of older Americans experience health problems that require long-term care

• Third-party payments to health care providers spawned long-term care industry

• Majority of long-term care facilities are proprietary (for profit)

• Alternatives to long-term care facilities

EP2.1.1a, 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Housing

• Rate of substandard homes among the elderly

exceeds those for other age groups• Government housing for the aged is difficult to

secure• Housing alternatives for the more economically

secure aged are needed

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


Transportation• Most older adults travel some distance to procure

the necessities of daily living• Transit systems for the aged are limited• Absence of transportation has resulted in many

older adults becoming homebound• Budget cuts have significantly reduced

transportation options for the elderly

EP 2.1.7b, 2.1.9b


People of color as older adults• Life expectancy is shorter• The percentage of the elderly living below the

poverty line is high, especially for persons of color• Percentages dramatically higher for households

headed by women

EP 2.1.4a


Services for older adults• Magnitude of need is great• Availability of services varies across communities• Budget cuts have adversely affected availability of

services• Need outstrips availability of services

EP 2.1.1a, 2.1.9b


Social work with older adults

• Generalist practice at the micro level most commonintervention

• Many opportunities exist for creating a more responsive opportunity structure for the aged at the community level

• Many schools of social work have established specializations in gerontology

EP 2.1.1a, c


Social work with older adults (cont’d)

• US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects an overallincrease of 22% for social work jobs between 2006 and 2016; that figure increases to 24% for medical and public health social workers and 30% for mental health and substance abuse social workers.

EP 2.1.1a, c

chapter 12 social work with older adults

Education

cengage learning

brookscole publishing

health care services

b copyright

mental health of older

work care

individualsmental health

health concernsep