Friday, May 20, 2016
The Elderly in America
In a communication class I took last semester the teacher brought up how poorly America as a whole takes care of the elderly. I never really thought about it because my grandma lives with my family so my family does a pretty solid job taking care of our elderly. My doesn't really represent most American families as it pretty European. In America it seems pretty normal to be placed into a retirement home at a certain point in life. In other countries/cultures, parents are supported by the children once the children grow up. In America, elderly people are often very lonely because family rarely visits them in these homes and their spouses often are not with them. Both types of supporting of the elderly have their benefits. On one hand it is easier for children to prosper without having their parents on their backs. On the other hand, I don't want to be lonely and playing bingo when I'm old. Hopefully by the time we're old America has a shift in the way it treats its elderly people.
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I think I kind of understand what you are getting at.. What do you suggest should change? I think it completely depends on the family. Personally, my aunt lived with my grandma for a very long time, helping her get around and do things. But when my aunt passed away from cancer, there was no one able to take care of my grandma, so we moved her into an assisted living facility. I think this is a great option, though you believe it is lonely. My family and I visited her very often and she made friends at the facility. She looked healthy and happy whenever we saw her, so we knew we made the right choice. So I don't think things are too bad. Why exactly do you think that?
ReplyDeleteI think Americans do this because the age of people in retirement housing is too young for some families to take in another person in their life, and often, the child of the elderly person does not have the time or resources to take care of their parent. If both the child and the parent are retired in an ideal world, then I do see why both should live together, but I see no issue with the elderly getting put in retirement homes if that is the best care for them because the child cannot provide that quality of care back at their house.
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