Advocating for Mental Health Services: Geriatric Care Management

Often, when families or individuals are in crisis with the onset of mental illness in an aging adult, there is much confusion and emotion to wade through. Often times, the aging population is not provided the adequate treatment for their mental health needs because they are not connected with the most beneficial resources. As helping professionals, we need to know how to best advocate for individuals to receive the best services possible.

Aging Care Advocates (http://www.agingcareadvocates.com/) provides valuable information about how to connect aging individuals with quality care within the community. This website specifically addresses Geriatric Care Management in the following article:

What is Geriatric Care Management?

As a result of today's complex healthcare system a new senior service has emerged. Geriatric Care Management has grown immensely in recent years due to the fact that many seniors are finding themselves lost in a maze of health professionals, institutions and family stresses.

Geriatric Care Managers are professionals with their degree in Social Work or Gerontology. They have the knowledge and experience to assist seniors and their families with long term care arrangements, everyday issues, and advocacy.

In our commitment to provide the highest quality care and support to the senior community, we are proud to offer such services to our clients.

Our team of Geriatric Care Managers can perform in-home assessments for seniors to identify problems and recommend possible solutions. Based on this assessment, they can offer referrals to medical services, legal and financial services, home care, and many other community resources. Our Geriatric Care Managers have referred their clients to services such as: Meals on wheels, home care, emergency buttons, psych services, eldercare attorneys etc.

Our care managers often act as a connecting bridge between the senior, their family members and supporting services that are offered in the Bay Area. They can coordinate all the services and keep in touch with verbal and written reports so the family members are always informed about their senior loved one.

Our Geriatric Care Managers recommend services that enable the senior to continue to reside safely at home for as long as possible. If and when a senior does have the need to move into a retirement community, assisted living facility or nursing home the GCM can assist with this process in order to make certain that this move is the most appropriate for the senior based on their unique needs. Once the senior has moved, the GCM can help them by visiting regularly and making sure their client's best interest and safety is in mind. 

The main goal of Aging Care Advocates is to assist seniors and their loved ones in making the best decisions for them and their well being based on each unique circumstance. If you feel you would benefit from the services of Aging Care Advocates, call Aging Care Advocates today."

This website provides valuable resources to caregivers, individuals, and helping professionals regarding the best practices for advocating for the aging population!

A Lack of Training for Practicioners

A lack of training for geriatricians......


Part of the problem with combating the issue with ageism in the mental health field is the lack of proper training for those who are working with older adults.  This lack of training is more serious than just a lack of knowledge on the part of the practicioner; it is actually harmful and puts older adults in serious peril.

Entrenched Ageism in Healthcare Isolates, Ignores and Imperils Elders

By Daniel Perry

The late Dr. Robert N. Butler did more than simply name the prejudicial attitude that values young lives over old ones. He taught us that ageism is the original sin of societies blessed with greater longevity: it is the snake in the garden corrupting the monumental social achievement of longer lives for more people. Despite being sought fervently since antiquity, greater human longevity, once achieved, seems to trigger an illogical self-loathing of our future selves, cruelly robbing the victory of its purpose, dignity and worth.

Dr. Butler identified ageism as a deeply ingrained distemper in American culture, and called it out where it thrives: in politics and government, the media, popular entertainment and the workplace. But he saved his sharpest criticism for medicine, medical education and healthcare.
Documenting Ageism
In 2003, the Alliance for Aging Research, guided by Dr. Butler’s concerns, published a report to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging called Ageism: How Healthcare Fails the Elderly. The report examined the following domains of ageism in healthcare:

• Healthcare professionals do not receive sufficient training in geriatrics;
• Older patients are less likely to receive vaccines and other preventive care;
• Older patients are less likely to be t ested or screened for common health problems;
• Effective medical interventions beneficial for older patients are often ignored, leading to inappropriate or incomplete treatment; and
• Older people are consistently excluded from clinical trials, though they are the largest users of tested and approved drugs and devices.

The Alliance documented how these manifestations of ageism take a serious toll and harm older patients by exacerbating and prolonging illness, isolation, unnecessary institutionalization, loss of independence and premature death.
Negative stereotypes of older people are internalized early in life: they operate on the subconscious, and are as virulent in elders as in younger people. Ageist attitudes among healthcare providers lead to missed or delayed diagnoses, poor management of multiple chronic conditions, lost independence, overuse, under-use and misuse of prescription drugs, and more.
Ageism and the Sin of Omission
Ageism begins with the sin of omission in medical and health education. Stinting on geriatric orientation at all levels of professional education creates a fertile breeding ground for bias, insensitivity, misdiagnosis and poor care of older patients.
“Train wreck,” “nightmare on a stretcher,” “dotty old guy in bed three” and “Gramps down the hall”— these are just a few of the derogatory terms used by emergency care workers as reported by Richard Currey, a certified physician assistant and freelance journalist, in the winter 2008 issue of AgingWell magazine.
In 1978, the first of what would be four major studies by the prestigious Institute of Medicine (IOM) cited a shortage of specialized training in geriatrics as a serious problem, given that people ages 65 and older are the largest and fastest growing group of health services users. Each IOM study, up to the most recent in 2008, made the same point and proposed solutions ranging from centers of excellence to retooling the healthcare workforce.
But IOM reports by themselves do not make policy. Without garnering significant political support, they lack the power to break through ingrained prejudicial attitudes.
In 2003, there were a total of five full departments of geriatrics out of 144 medical schools in the United States. Today there are seven. Divisions for aging and geriatrics exist within many departments of family practice, psychiatry and internal medicine; but only a handful of schools require coursework or rotations in the topic.
The total number of certified geriatricians is 7,162—less than 1 percent of America’s medical workforce. Ageism is both a cause and a by-product of this dismal statistic.
Programs administered by the federal government—Geriatric Academic Career Awards, Geriatric Education Centers and Geriatric Training Programs—are drastically undersupported and struggle to carry out their missions with flat or declining funding year after year.
Hope Hangs in the Balance
Progress against systematic ageism in healthcare has been slow to take root. But reforms in the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA) signal a major counter-offensive against the prevailing ageist dynamic. The ACA’s benefits, however, have been largely obscured by the raging debate over an individual mandate for health insurance and other factors.
Often overlooked are the ACA’s steps to change Medicare to focus more on chronic disease prevention and care coordination. Provisions seek to reduce re-hospitalizations, explore new models of care, enable patient-centered comparative effectiveness research and screen for cognitive impairment in the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit. All of this hangs in the balance as the U.S. Supreme Court takes up challenges to the constitutionality of the ACA itself.
As a trained psychiatrist, Dr. Butler realized that ageism must be opposed with political and organizational reforms. He also recognized the deep psychological roots of the prejudice. He wrote, “the underlying basis of ageism is the dream and fear of growing older, becoming ill and dependent, and approaching death. People are afraid, and that leads to profound ambivalence.”

---

Daniel Perry is president and CEO of the Alliance for Aging Research in Washington, D.C.


 Retrieved from http://www.asaging.org/blog/entrenched-ageism-healthcare-isolates-ignores-and-imperils-elders
 

"Ageism is Pervasive in Health Care?"

CBS News released an article on May 20, 2003, entitled, "Ageism is Pervasive in Health Care?" 

The following is a transcript of this article:

Ageism is pervasive in health care, with older people excluded from tests for drugs, less likely to receive preventive care, and deprived of professionals trained in their needs, according to a report presented to a Senate committee Monday.

"Ageism is a deep and often-unconscious prejudice against the old, an attitude that permeates American culture," said Daniel Perry, executive director of the not-for-profit Alliance for Aging Research, which prepared the report.

Among the shortcomings: only about 10 percent of American medical schools require course work or rotations in geriatric medicine, and fewer than 3 percent of medical school graduates take elective courses in geriatrics.

Only five out of 145 medical colleges have full geriatric medicine departments, Perry told the Senate Special Committee on Aging.

Sen. John Breaux of Louisiana, the top Democrat on the committee, said there are some 42,000 pediatricians in the country compared to 9,000 specialists in geriatric medicine, a number that is far too small as the nation girds for 77 million aging baby boomers.

The report, citing various studies, said only 10 percent of people aged 65 and above receive the appropriate screenings in such areas as bone mass, colorectal and prostate cancer and glaucoma. Breaux compared that to the 95 percent of five-year-olds who are up-to-date on their immunizations.

It also related that while older Americans are the biggest users of prescription drugs, 40 percent of clinical studies between 1991 and 2000 excluded people over 75 from participating.

Dr. Robert Butler, head of the International Longevity Center and the man who coined the term "ageism" in the 1960s, cited studies concluding that medication problems may be responsible for as many as 17 percent of hospitalizations of older Americans and that drug misuse by older people costs some $20 billion a year in hospital stays.

Dr. Joel Streim, head of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, said that while 20 percent of those above 65 have a mental illness, mental health care and alcohol and substance abuse treatments focus mainly on young people.

"Ageist attitudes and health care policies that discriminate against older adults prevent them from getting the treatment they need and deserve. This is a shameful tragedy," he said.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said he was raising the same problems more than 20 years ago when he was executive director of the Oregon chapter of the Gray Panthers. "Nothing short of a revolution" in the country's medical education system is needed, he said.

The report also recommended increased training and education of health care providers, more research into aging, the inclusion of older patients in clinical drug trials, and education for both patients and physicians in proper screening and prevention methods.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ageism-is-pervasive-in-health-care/
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www.theguardian.com

This article presents information regarding several facets of health for the older generations. Most notably, the article highlights the fact that while a large percentage of individuals over the age of 65 have a mental illness, the majority of mental health care focuses on younger generations. This type of ageist attitude prevents older adults from getting the mental health care that they need, which is detrimental to our society as a whole. 

What can we as helping professionals do to combat this issue?

Medicare Coverage for Mental Health Concerns

What is Medicare?

Medicare is a federal insurance program that serves: 1) adults who are 65 years and older, 2) young people with specific disabilities, and 3) people diagnosed with end-stage renal disease, which is permanent kidney failure (Medicare.gov, 2014).

Medicare can be understood in four parts:

Part A, known as hospital insurance, covers inpatient hospital stays and care in a nursing home, hospice, or sometimes in the home (Medicare.gov, 2014).

Part B, medical insurance, covers outpatient care, doctors' appointments, and medical supplies (Medicare.gov, 2014).

Part C is a Medicare Advantage Plan through a private insurance company that contractually provides Medicare Parts A and B benefits.  It also includes Health Maintenance Organizations, Preferred Provider Organizations, Private Fee-for-Service Plans, Special Needs Plans, Medicare Medical Savings Account Plans, and, in most instances, will also provide prescription drug coverage (Medicare.gov, 2014).  It is important to note that this is NOT original Medicare. 

Part D provides prescription drug coverage under original Medicare, and to some Medicare Cost Plans, Medicare Fee-for-Service Plans, and Medicare Medical Savings Account Plans.  As previously mentioned, the latter three plans are available through private insurance companies that have been approved by Medicare (Medicare.gov, 2014). 

Now, let's take a few steps back and revisit Parts A and B...

Medicare Part A, hospital insurance, provides coverage for persons who must be admitted for mental health services in inpatient care at either a general or psychiatric hospital.  If a person is admitted to a psychiatric hospital, Medicare will only cover up to 190 days of care in that setting during one's lifetime (Medicare.gov, 2014).   While everyone who has Medicare is eligible to receive such services, the co-pays may add up.  For example, under original Medicare, if a person is admitted for inpatient services, there is a $1,216 deductible per benefit period (Medicare.gov, 2014).  A benefit period begins on the day of hospital admittance and ends 60 days after treatment has completed. 

Here is the breakdown:
- Days 1-60, $0 copay per day of benefit period
- Days 61-90, $304 copay per day of benefit period
- Days 91-?, $608 copay per lifetime reserve day of benefit period

Lifetime Reserve Days are additional days that Medicare covers if you remain in the hospital longer than 90 days.  Each person has 60 in their lifetime.  During these days, Medicare will pay all costs EXCEPT copay.

Medicare Part B, medical insurance, covers outpatient mental health services.  This means that visits with psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, counselors, and other medical service specialists are covered.  Actually, it means they are covered ONLY IF the helping professional accepts Medicare. 

Here is a breakdown of the costs:
- $0 for a yearly depression screening if the helping professional accepts Medicare
- 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for visits to these helping professionals...but don't forget that deductible! 
- 20-40% of the Medicare-approved amount in additional copayment if you treatment is in a hospital outpatient clinic or department

A little background on Medicare...

As of January 1, 2014, Medicare began covering 80% of the cost for therapy and mental health services, as part of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act, 2008).  Medicare has slowly increased the amount of coverage they provided for therapy services.  In 2008, Medicare provided 50% coverage.  In 2012, Medicare provided 65% coverage (Graham, 2013).  Of course, there is still a deductible, but there's improvement! 

Where are those accepted practitioners???

Unfortunately, despite the increases in mental health care coverage by Medicare, there are still very few practitioners accepted by Medicare to provide services for those with original Medicare or other offered Advantage plans.  Actually, psychiatrists are much less likely to accept any insurance as compared to other specialist health practitioners (Pear, 2013).  Medicare's expansion in coverage is certainly worth celebrating; however, the financial roadblock that hindered older adults' access to mental health care services is one in a series. 

       http://kalw.org/post/medicare-boosting-coverage-mental-health-issues

References

Graham, J. (2013 Dec 27). Medicare to cover more mental health costs. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/12/27/medicare-to-cover-more-mental-health-costs/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Medicare.gov. 2014. Retrieved from www.medicare.gov.

Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-110publ275/pdf/PLAW-110publ275.pdf

Pear, R. (2013 Dec 11). Fewer psychiatrists seen taking health insurance. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/12/us/politics/psychiatrists-less-likely-to-accept-insurance-study-finds.html

Concerns when Assessing for Depression in Older Adults

If you have been keeping up with the earlier posts, you have learned that depression is the most common mental illness diagnosis in the aging population.  Something you might have missed that depression is not a normal part of aging, regardless of what the general population might think (National Institute on Aging, 2013; Geriatric Mental Health Foundation, 2013). Sadness and grief are normal reactions to situations, such as loss of a loved one and loneliness, and are experienced by people at all stages of life.  However, in older adults, depression can be mistaken for grief and sadness because of the stigma related to discussing this population discussing their symptoms, in addition to clinicians not recognizing more subtle changes in behaviors and cognitions (National Institute on Aging, 2013).  

You might wonder: why do we need to be concerned with older individuals not receiving mental health services to treat depression?  According to the Geriatric Mental Health Foundation (2013) “the direct and indirect costs of depression have been estimated at $43 billion each year, not including pain and suffering and diminished quality of life. Late life depression is particularly costly because of the disability that it causes and the impact on the physical health of the older person.”  Thus, depression in older adults not only have an impact on their own physical, mental, and emotional well-being, but it also results in a financial cost to society.  Helping professionals need to be aware of the signs and not dismiss symptoms that may indicate feelings of despair and hopelessness because this error puts the aging population at risk for suicide (National Institute on Aging, 2013). 

Furthermore, helping professionals sometimes normalize and under-diagnose depression in older adults, possibly contributing to this population’s suicide rate of 14.9% (P Span, 2013).  Moreover, many experts believe that suicide rates are under-reported in older adults, especially when the means is a medication overdose (P Span, 2013).  Improved screenings and treatments for depression have decreased the rates of suicide in older adults, but many clinicians are still not looking at the big picture.  Aging individuals are more than the sum of their parts- they are more than their physical and mental disabilities.  Practitioners may view an older client as being physically disabled, dismissing the other systems at work; the psycho-social functioning of the aging population is sometimes overlooked, which could have dire consequences for their clients. For instance, an older client exhibiting symptoms of confusion and loss of memory may be medicated to treat dementia when the root source of the problem is clinical depression. According to Rebecca Smith, the Acting Director of the Gerontology Specialization at the University of Louisville Kent School of Social Work, over-medicating is a major problem in regards to this population (R. Smith, personal communication, June 13, 2014).  It seems a simpler solution to offer patients and clients a pill rather than offering talk therapy to treat depression. However, mental illness is a complex issue with many factors contributing to its severity and duration. As helping professionals, we need to be able look for the signs of depression and link older individuals with the most appropriate (not easiest!) intervention(s).

 

Let's get to work on preventing suicide related to untreated/undiagnosed depression in the aging population!

Here’s a quick guide from the Geriatric Mental Health Foundation (2013) for what to look for when assessing for depression in older individuals:

• Persistent sadness lasting two or more weeks
• Difficulty sleeping or concentrating
• Feeling slowed down
• Withdrawing from regular social activities
• Excessive worries about finances and health problems
• Pacing and fidgeting
• Feeling worthless or helpless
• Weight/appearance changes or frequent tearfulness
• Thoughts of suicide or death

References

Geriatric Mental Health Foundation. (2013). Depression in late adulthood: A fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.gmhfonline.org/gmhf/consumer/index.html

National Institute of Aging. (2013). Depression. Retrieved from http://nihseniorhealth.gov/depression/aboutdepression/01.html

P Span. (2007, Aug 7). Suicide rates are high among the elderly. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/07/high-suicide-rates-among-the-elderly/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

What exactly is Gerontology?

 

http://www.wku.edu/aging/gerontology_education.php

According to the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Georgia, gerontology is defined as the study of aging and older adults. As times are changing and longevity increases, there has been a shift towards greater study in the science of gerontology. This field has especially been evolving in most recent decade with all the changes in technology and improvements with medicine in such. The need for more different types of practitioners in this field is also growing as the baby boomer generation continues to reach the age of older adulthood. Practitioners and researchers in this field come from very diverse backgrounds, including: social science, public health, policy, physiology, and psychology to name a few (Institute of Gerontology, 2014). Within the field of gerontology, some of the most important areas of study are scientific study of the physical processes that come along with aging as the body changes during middle-age and older adulthood, a multidisciplinary approach of studying the societal changes and implications due to aging, as well as implementing programs and policies based on this knowledge (Institution of Gerontology, 2014).

It is important to note that there is a difference between gerontology and geriatrics, because these two fields are often confused with one another. Gerontology is a multidisciplinary approach and involves the physical, social, emotional, and mental realm with regards to aging (Institute of Gerontology, 2014). Geriatrics, on the other hand, is related the the medical field and emphasizes treatment and care of older adults (Institute of Gerontology, 2014). Both of these fields are related, though, because they both strive to understand the aging process so older adults can maximize high quality of life during this time period.


Now, some of you may be thinking that this is all fine and great, but why should I personally care about the field of gerontology (especially if you are currently a younger individual). What I have to say to that is that studying gerontology is important in understanding your own health as well as other public health issues that our society is facing. In understanding gerontology, you can can make plans for your own life course and start making decisions surrounding your personal needs. Studying gerontology is also important for communities and legislators with regarding public policy decisions. The aging population is rapidly growing and older adults need us to stand up and advocate for them!


Institute of Gerontology. (21 June, 2014). What is Gerontology? Retrieved from http://www.publichealth.uga.edu/geron/what-is

A Look at Age Discrimination

A Look at Age Discrimination


While our project is focusing on ageism in the mental health field, it is important to understand how prevalent the ageism and discrimination is, and how those thoughts and attitudes have shaped our culture and have bled over into other fields such as mental health.

The following video does a great job of illustrating examples of ageism, particuarly in the workforce. 

When we are in a culture which accepts that older adults can and even should be fired from positions, just for their age, then something is fundamentally wrong.  The societal view of older adults as those who are no longer capable of performing tasks may color a practitioner's view, and cause them to not treat the individual the same as they would someone younger.

A culture change needs to occur, and the first step in doing so is to raise awareness that this issue DOES exist, and it is affecting lives.

Mental Health Diagnoses in the Aging Population

Overlooking older individuals' state of mental health is a critical problem in the field of helping professionals that needs to be examined.  A person’s mental and emotional well-being still needs to be taken into consideration just as much as their physical health.  The World Health Organization (2010) found that over 20% of older adults suffer from a mental disorder.  This percentage may seem small, but individuals over the age 65 will be more than 20% of the population by the year 2030, coming to about 71 million older adults (Robinson, Dauenhauer, Bishop, & Baxter, 2012).  Let’s do the math: 20% of 71 million is 14,200,000.  That’s 14,200,000 aging individuals who will be requiring mental health services by 2030.  What’s moreover, clinicians are likely to underdiagnose mental illnesses in the aging population, consequently meaning that there will be an even greater amount of older individuals needing treatment (World Health Organization, 2010). 

To increase the understanding of the role of older individuals in the mental health field, let’s discuss one of mental health issues that is most pressing and prevalent among this population: depression.  A major consideration with this mental health disorder is that clinicians and caregivers often confuse depression for grief when it comes to diagnosing an older individual (NAMI, 2009). In addition, depression can be confused with a “natural” cognitive decline because this mental illness can result in symptoms such as confusion, memory loss, and delusions (NAMI, 2009).  Furthermore, when depression is not properly identified, it could have fatal consequences for an older individual since NAMI (2009) notes that depression is the most significant predictive risk factor for those in late adulthood to commit/attempt suicide. Thus, it is imperative that social workers, therapists, psychiatrists, and other helping professionals recognize the potential signs that could be related to depression.  Keep on the look-out for clients who have "persistent and vague complaints" about pain, "demanding behaviors", and changes in behaviors such as becoming lethargic (NAMI, 2009)!

FACT: depression is not a natural part of aging- it can be treated!

References

National Alliance on Mental Health. (2009). Mental illnesses. Retrieved from http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=By_Illness&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=7515

Robinson, L.M., Dauenhauer, J., Bishop, K.M., & Baxter, J. (2012). Growing health disparities for persons who are aging with intellectual and developmental disabilities: The social work linchpin. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 55(2), 175-190, DOI: 10.1080/01634372.2011.644030

World Health Organization. (2010). Mental health and older adults. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs381/en/

What is Ageism? According to ALFA

According to the Assisted Living Foundation of America (ALFA) (2013): 


"Ageism is a form of discrimination and prejudice, particularly experienced by seniors. Most seniors are mentally and physically active regardless of age with a great deal to contribute. However, societal norms marginalize seniors, treat them with disrespect, make them feel unwelcome and otherwise generalize as if they were all the same. 

For example:   

• Late night comedians and talk show hosts joke about seniors and memory loss;
• Doctors often talk past the senior patient to an adult child as if the senior wasn’t even in the room;
• Younger adults mock seniors for being “slow”;
• Commercial advertisements depict seniors as out of date, and lacking knowledge about modern culture and new technologies;
• Certain laws and regulations are paternalistic towards seniors and limit their choices. 

Ageism robs seniors of choice, independence, dignity and negatively impacts their quality of life.  ALFA seeks to illuminate discriminatory practices that adversely affect seniors’ lives, illuminate prejudicial attitudes toward the aging process, and institutional practices that perpetuate stereotypes about seniors. ALFA aligns and supports programs that break traditional notions of aging."

Here is a video from ALFA that provides a brief visual of ageism today:

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO1jlbTFhdk

Here are some visual examples of Ageism in the Media:

http://seniorplanet.org/worth-a-read-a-guide-to-ageism-for-media-types-and-everyone-else/

http://filipspagnoli.wordpress.com/2009/07/29/human-rights-nonsense-1-ageism/

http://www.advertolog.com/ontario-human-rights-commission/print-outdoor/65-4862955/

http://blog.ecaring.com/ageism-in-america-questions-answers/

http://sharronhinchliff.com/2013/05/31/ageism-and-sexism-in-the-media-still-looking-for-the-older-female-tv-presenters/

How Do We Define the Older Generation?

By 2030, the population of older adults in the United States could see an increase to 71 million (Robinson, Dauenhauer, Bishop, & Baxter, 2012).  That means approximately 20% of the population!  Older adults are living longer and healthier lives.  They are defeating the stereotypes that we, the younger generations, have typically used to describe them.  Terms such as "elderly" are not necessarily politically correct.  Identifying them as "seniors" isn't all that nice, either, because many of them do not even physically feel their chronological age.  I prefer to use the term "older adult."  They are older in years, but they have lived through so much and THAT is what makes them the older generation.  Older adults are the best resources for younger generations.  We can learn so much from them! 

Think about your grandparents or other older adults you know for a minute...What do they do on a daily basis?  What are their interests?  How active are they in their 60s, 70s, 80s...even 90s?  Are they experiencing a lot of health concerns that prevent them from remaining independent?  What have they taught you?  If you were to call them elderly, how would they respond?  

My grandma is incredibly active and she is almost 80 years old!  She plays tennis, goes for walks, and loves to play with her grandchildren...

 So, let's review...

What to say	What NOT to say
Older adult	Elderly
Field of Gerontology	Senior citizen
Late adulthood	Geezer
Older generation	Old people

 

References

 

Owens, A. (2008, Oct 21). Is "elderly" politically correct? [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://blog.aarp.org/2008/10/21/is_elderly_politically_correct/

 

Robinson, L.M., Dauenhauer, J., Bishop, K.M., & Baxter, J. (2012). Growing health disparities for persons who are aging with intellectual and developmental disabilities: The social work linchpin. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 55(2), 175-190, DOI:10.1080/01634372.2011.644030