Social aspects of ageing Flashcards
What does an ageing population mean?
Becoming more top heavy
More older people
Happening in UK, will continue to become more top heavy by 2050
What is causing an ageing population?
Life expectancy increasing
Baby boom after WW2
Define healthy life expectancy (HLE)
Summary measure of population health, estimates based on question ‘How is your health in general?’
Define disability-free life expectancy (DFLE)
Estimates based on those who answer yes to both:
- do you have any physical/ mental health conditions/ illnesses lasting or expected to last 12m+?
- does your condition(s)/illness(es) reduce your ability to carry out day-to-day activities?
What is active ageing?
Process of optimising opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance QoL as people age
Policy framework for active ageing (WHO)
Removing barriers within health and social care in strategic areas Problems of poor oral health -systemic health problems -financial burden -reduced self-confidence -reduced QoL
Polciy framwork for active ageing (UK)
Retirement as increasingly active phase of life
-give people opportunities to contribute to society
-encourage people to take personal responsibility for own wellbeing incl. health
Policies
-helping those at risk of loneliness & social isolation
-improve local services
-improve recruitment and retention of ageing workforce
What did the review of oral health surveys reveal about oral health among older adults in England?
- Older adults less likely to rate their oral health as good, poorer OHQoL
- Difficulty of access for older adults living in care homes
- Limited knowledge about provision by ‘care in your home’ services
- Need for training on recognition of urgent problems
What is the biggest reason for a decline in sound and untreated teeth?
Age (Adult Dental Health Survey 2009)
Which older adults reported the most problems?
Those with natural teeth combined with partial dentures
Impact of mouth in relation to others
- Comfort, hygiene, health
- Awareness of public presentation, under various forms of surveillance
Experiences with dental professionals
- Practical difficulties
- Psychological impact of earlier experience
- Positive relationships: involve trust, understanding, being listened to
Sociology of age and ageing
Ageing as combination of biological, psychological and social processes that affect people as they grow older
Age as multidimensional
Different dimensions of age
- Chronological
- Biological (physical ageing)
- Social (norms relating to age)
- Personal (moment in life course reached in relation to aims)
- Subjective (how we feel ‘inside’)
Who is old?
- Old age is social construct
- Percieved 55 (Turkey) to 68 (Greece)
- Historical and cultural variations
The life course
- Ageing is process that continues from birth to death, but transitions between diff phases not pre-determined
- sociology looks at this socially and culturally
- includes consideration of people’s social surroundings and stories of people’s lives over time
Define age strata
People who share similar social rights and duties by virtue of age
Define age cohort
People born at a particular time who have experiences in common
Life course and age cohorts in dentistry
Social context of dental treatment
- prevalence of caries
- lack of equipment and pain relief
- multiple teeth removed under anaesthetic leading to lifelong fear
Mechanisms that affect experiences of dentistry and oral health
- legal rule change
- ongoing research
- social campaigning
- changes to beliefs > changes to social rules/ norms
Ageism
Equality Act 2010
-discrimination on basis of age is unlawful
-public sector equality duty(2011)
Ageist stereotypes
Societal obsession with youthfulness
Interaction with other forms of discrimination
Theories of older age
- Disengagement theory
- Structured dependency theory
- Cultural gerontology
- Critical gerontology
Disengagement theory
- functionalist theory (how elements of society work together)
- ‘inevitable mutual withdrawal, resulting in decreased interaction between an ageing and other in the social system he belongs to’
- irreversible
Do older people choose to visit the dentist less frequently?
Yes
- 84% of 65-74yos attend at least every 2 years
- 82% of 75-84yos
- 74% of 85 and over
