Eldercare in Public Health Law Essay Example

Introduction

The number of older adults aged 65 years and above in the United States has increased and is expected to grow in the future. The increase in the elderly population has been attributed to the rise in life expectancy and high fertility. As a result, the addition created demand for social services as well as well as public health system meaning that proper strategies have to be put in place to address this issue. This essay will make a comparison on procedures used to address increasing elderly population in United States and Italy.

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From And Thou Shalt Honor: Caring for the Caregiver, It is evident that elderly caregivers have no one to take care of them. Although the United States have developed strategies to address as well as care for the elderly, those caregivers who are also elderly need to be remembered too. This is because a study reported that caregivers are more likely to die first as compared to their counterparts (Gately & Ladin, 2018). In my opinion, a policy whereby support groups are developed for caregivers would help them to relieve stress.

Economics Impact on Public Health Policy

Although the use of economics on health care and public health services was given little attention in the past, economics has currently boosted the goals of public health services. Economics was introduced to research in public health to ensure fair and transparent decisions in healthcare provision and provide the best tools for use in public health policy. Economic evaluation has established a powerful effect in public health practice to ensure that specific goal in health is achieved

In the United States, strategies used to address the increasing elderly population include implementation of the affordable care Act which has enabled older adults with low income to have access to better medical services.

Also, a nursing home for the elderly is another strategy that has helped the elderly to get social care from professionals (Anderson, Goodman, Holtzman, Posner, & Northridge, 2012). The government has also provided funds for health professional training to equip health professional with better skills to deal with the elderly. Comparing these strategies with Italy, the country has nursing homes for the elderly just like the United States. However, the only difference between the two is that Italy has improved on safer medicines for the elderly. Recently Italy, introduced intermediate care which would enable the elderly to stay at home rather than being taken to a nursing home (Mazzola et al., 2015). I think this move is a good one because the elderly will not feel neglected or dumped in nursing homes.

Conclusion

In conclusion, proper strategies need to put in place to care for the elderly so that they can feel love and compassion in their old age. Effective health policies and provision of resources to the public health can significantly determine how better public health policy functions. The public health practitioners ensure that the vital issues that better effective policies are in place while eliminating poor ones. Therefore, public health policy provides better health for all classes of people since it offers equal opportunities to all members of the public.

References

Anderson, L. A., Goodman, R. A., Holtzman, D., Posner, S. F., & Northridge, M. E. (2012). Aging in the United States: Opportunities and Challenges for Public Health. American Journal of Public Health, 102(3), 393-395. doi:10.2105/ajph.2011.300617

Gately, M., & Ladin, K. (2018). Family and Other Caregivers. Chronic Illness Care, 111-120. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-71812-5_9

Mazzola, P., Rimoldi, S. M., Rossi, P., Noale, M., Rea, F., Facchini, C., . . . Annoni, G. (2015). Aging in Italy: The Need for New Welfare Strategies in an Old Country. The Gerontologist, 56(3), 383-390. doi:10.1093/geront/gnv152