Unit 1: Human Lifespan Development 2

Gesell's theory helps to explain how biological maturation (the process of maturating) is related to overall development. 

Gesell's maturation theory:

- Gesell based his theory on the belief that: development is genetically determined from birth, a biological process, children follow the same orderly sequence in their development, the pace of development may vary depending on physical and intellectual development. 

- Gesell observed the behaviours of many children, from which he determined averages or norms, which he called milestones of development. His milestones describe children's physical, social and emotional development. 

- Gesell was a psychologist and paediatrician. He still remains influential in our understanding of child development. 

Evaluation:

+ He determined typical norms of development that are still used today

+ He used advanced methodology in observations of behaviour of large numbers of children

_ He did not consider the influence of individual cultural differences in children

_ He believed that the norms of development he described were desirable.

Social learning theory suggests that the way children behave is an interaction between personal and environmental factors. 

Bandura's theory: based on the belief that learning happens through observing, imitating and modelling the behaviour of others. 

1. Attention: learning takes place when a child focuses their attention on a person who models the behaviour. Children are more likely to imitate the behaviour of someone they admire or identify with.

2. Retention: what the child has observed is retained in their memory to be used when an opportunity occurs

3. Reproduction: what has been learned is reproduced or imitated. May be rehearsed in mind first and imitated later. 

4. Motivation: children feel motivated because they anticipate extrinsic and intrinsic rewards (vicarious reinforcement). 

Reinforcement:

Behaviour may be repeated or resisted. 

Positive reinforcement: behaviour is repeated because of personal satisfaction or rewards

Negative reinforcement: behaviour is not repeated to avoid an adverse experience such as lack of satisfaction or being told off

Vicarious reinforcement: children may be motivated because they see that the person or model they observe is getting satisfaction or positive feedback, children may resist imitating the action because the model recieves negative feedback from their action. 

Bobo doll experiment: aggresive adults were rewarded, reprimanded or no consequence to show that children would copy agressive behaviour and outcome for the adult impacted the likelihood of child copying behaviour. 

Results: children learnt aggressive behaviour through observation and were more likely to imitate an adult who was rewarded for aggressive behaviour than one who was reprimanded. 

It is widely accepted that both nature and nuture play a role in human development. 

Nature: influence of innate features of development, genetically pre-programmed and have inherited everything from parents

Nature and Nurture: Piaget accepted that children develop in a predestined way but believed experiences help to develop new concepts. 

Nature: influence of environment and nurturing, charactersitcs can be acquired and can be shaped through experiences. 

Stress-diathesis model: explains how both nature and nurture play a part in the development of psychological disorders. 

Nature: Diathesis: a predisposition or vulnerability to mental disorders due to abnormality of the brain or neurotransmitters (genetic/biological factors)

Nurture: traumatic events in person's life e.g. relationships, abuse, culture

Genetic factors can affect physical growth, development, health and appearance. 

Genetic predisposition: individual's genetic predisposition can be triggered by the environment and life experiences. 

Genetic predisposition to conditions: Genes are set of instructions to the cells that determine growth and development. Individuals inherit 23 pairs of chromosones from each parent which contain genes. Health conditions can arise from defective inherited genes. 

Dominant genes: A defective gene can be passed on from one parent or both. The likelihood of developing a condition depends upon whether the defective gene is recessive or dominant. A dominant gene only needs to be passed on by one parent. 

Brittle bone disease: causes bones to break easily

Huntington's disease: causes involuntary movement, cognitive and psychiatric disorders 

Recessive genes: a recessive gene must be passed on from both parents for the child to develop the condition.

Cystic fibrosis: causes a build-up of thick, sticky mucous that can damage lungs

Phenylketonuria (PKU): causes intellectual disability and developmental delay

Duchenne muscular dystrophy: causes muscle weakness and wasting resulting in difficulty with motor skills and walking. 

If the defective gene is passed from one parent only, the child becomes a carrier. 

Conditions caused by an abnormality in an individual's chromosone:

1. Down's syndrome: extra copy of chromosone 21. Causes characteristic facial features, growth delay and intellectual disability.

2. Klinefelter syndrome: boys have extra X chromosone, causing problems during, or delay in puberty

3. Colour blindness: caused by mutations in X chromosone, more common in males, makes it difficult to distinguish colours

Genetic susceptibility to disease: increased likelihood of developing a disease because of an individual's genetic makeup. 

Can lead to diseases such as:

- cancer

- high blood cholesterol

- diabetes

Biological factors are those that affect the development of a living organism. 

- The mother's lifestyle during pregnancy can affect the health and development of the unborn child. Poor lifestyle choices may affect the unborn child:

- poor diet

- smoking

- alcohol abuse/ drug abuse

The effects of poor lifestyle choices in pregnancy include:

- low birth weight, premature birth

- long-term health problems, learning disabilities

-developmental delay and congenital defects 

Maternal infections: Infections such as rubella or cytomegalovirus (CMV) can be passed to the baby in the womb. This may cause:

- health problems, cogenital defects

- still birth, miscarriage 

Foetal alcohol syndrome: is caused by exposure to alcohol in the womb. The symtoms include:

- small head circumference, neurological problems

- abnormal growth, developmental delay and facial abnormalities. 

Congenital abnormalities: defects or anomalies in the developing foetus, such as congenital heart disease or club foot. Anomalies may be detected before birth, during or later life. 

Factors contributing to congential abnormalities:

- Genetic: Down Syndrome

- Nutritional: such as deficiency in folate, which increases the risk of neural tube defect (spina bifida)

- Infections: such as rubella resulting in deafness and health problems

- Environmental: such as maternal exposure to pesticides, chemicals, radiation or alcohol or tobacco, causing abnormal growth. 

Pollution: happens when harmful substances contaminate the atmosphere. Pollutants are taken into the body via the nose and mouth or through the skin. 

Conditions caused by pollutants:

- respiratory disorders: asthma, lung cancer

- cardiovascular problems: heart attack, stroke

- allergies: wheezing, rashes, anaphylactic shock

Poor housing conditions: this can lead to short-term or long-term problems.

Effects of poor housing conditions:

- Poor ventilation/damp and mould/ respiratory disorders/ overcrowing, anxiety and depression

- Inadequate hearing: hypothermia, poor sanitation/vermin: risk of infection and lack of oudoor space: cardiovascular problems 

Health care services are available to support individuals with their health and social care needs.

Health services: urgent/emergency care, sexual health, mental health, pharmacy, dental, eye car, walk-in-centres, home nursing, chronic health care, community health, maternity services, paediatric care

Adult and children's social care: day centres and luncheon clubs, supported living, residential care, benefits financial support, home care, housing, children services

Health and social care: advisory services, advocacy, discharge planning, transport, nursing home, end-of-life care and safeguarding.

Access to services can prove difficult to some people:

- Service avilaibility: specalist services or drugs are not available in some geographical areas, there may be restrictions on opening times, pressure on services due to increased demand, lack of public transport to take individuals to and from services and also waiting times are too long.

- Individual circumstances: mobility difficulties restrict physical access, learning/communication difficulties can impact on a person's understanding of and contact with available services, sensory difficulties impact a person's abilitiy to find out about and access services and personal circumstances such as caring for others, working long hours can make attending services difficult.

The quality of family relationships has a long term impact on development.

Dysfunctional families: members of the family do not carry out responsibilities, needs of family members are not met, family members dispay negativity towards each other, sibling rivalry and conflict, abuse may happen and use of blame and coercion.

Reasons for family dysfunction include: parents perpetuate their own dysfunctional ubringing, untreated mental illness in one or more family members and alcohol or drug abuse by one or more members of the family.

Impact of dysfunction: members of dysfunction families have negative self-image and low self-esteem and difficulty building friendships and relationships.

Possilble effects of parental divorce or seperation: stress, isolation, psychological problems, guilt, health problems and increased likelihood of drug and alcohol abuse.

Parenting styles:

Demanding: Authorative: children are accepted for who they are, this is mutual love and respect. Children are often self-controlled, confident and have high self-esteem.

Demanding: Authoritarian: parents assert their authority, children are controlled. Children may have poor social skills and low self-esteem.

Undemanding: Permissive: Parents are indulgent, they do not attempt to control behaviour. Children may be self-confident, impulsive and have difficulty building friendships.

Undemanding: Disengaged/uninvolved: Parents are neglectful and show a lack of interest. There is poor attachment. Children may have low confidence and self-esteem and hide their emotions.

Bullying can happen at any stage of life. It has a negative effect on everyone involved: the victim, the bully and any onlookers.

Bullying can take different forms:

1: Verbal: using words to hurt e.g. name calling, making racist, sexist or disabilist comments, making hurtful comments, making threats and ridiculing.

2: Emotional: causing psychological hurt e.g. spreading rumours, excluding, ignoring and stalking

3: Physical: using force e.g. hitting, pushing, kicking, slapping, taking/hiding another's belongings

4: Cyber bullying: using technology to hurt e.g. sending hurtful messages, sharing personal information without permissionn, posting inappropriate photos and hurtful/anomymous text messags

Short-term effects of bullying:

- Stress/anxiety, eating disorders

- Inability to cope with life events, withdrawal from school, work and activities

- Low self-esteem and poor self-image

Long-term effects:

Bullying can have a significant psychological effect on development and wellbeing e.g.

-difficulties in forming relationships, poor academic achievement

- substance missuse, self-harm and increased risk of suicide

Development is influenced by an individual's culture, community in which they live and their beliefs (religous or spiritual).

Culture, community and beliefs influence:

- dress, diet, lifestyle, relationships, morality, personal values

Lifestyle rules: many religions and beliefs have lifestyle rules which followers abide by:

Dietary restrictions: some religions forbid the consumption of certain foods e.g. pork for muslims, many hindus are vegetarian. Possible health benefits are high fibre or low fat diets, lower risk of cholesterol, heart disease and low blood pressure. Reduced risk of cancers and heart disease if alcohol is restricted. Possible health risks are nutritonal deficencies such as lack of calcium, iron and vitamin D (for healthy bone growth) and protein (for maintenance of muscles, skin and bones).

Fasting: several religions have periods of fasting such as Ramadhan and Jews for several days. Possible health benefits are loss of weight, reduced cholesterol levels and detoxification. Possible health risks are heartburn, constipation, malnourishment, dehydration.

Medical interventions: Christian scientists believe in healing through prayer and Jehovah Witnesses do not trust blood transfusions. Possible health risks are deterioration to health and possible death.

Possible social and emotional effects of culture and beliefs:

+ People share the same values, beliefs and religion

+ People feel accepted and are supported by others

+ People feel valued by others because of their beliefs

_ People are discriminated against due to beliefs

_ People feel excluded due to their beliefs

_ A person's culture is ignored or not understood.

Economic factors are all the aspects of life related to money, including educational achievement, our job, how we choose to live and the amount of money we make.

Economic factors:

- Income and expenditure: a person's level of income and personal wealth

- Education: the stage of education reached, educational opportunities and achievements

- Employment status: whether a person is in work or not, the type of work, whether full or part time and future prospects

- Lifestyle and health: being able to afford a healthy diet or access to excerise, making choices about sexual practises, alchohol, smoking, drug abuse that can affect personal finance and the ability to keep and sustain employment. 

Effects of economic factors:

Physical:

+ Manual/active jobs improve muscle tone and stamina

+ Lifestyle: being able to afford healthy diet and regular excersise to keep digestive systems, joints healthy and circulatory systems

_ Manual jobs may cause muscular and skeletal problems

_ Desk/based jobs can cause back problems, repetitive stain injury, lack of fitness and increased risk of joint problems and heart disease 

Intellectual:

+ Being in work, education or training promotes creative thinking and problem-solving skills

+ Being able to afford a good diet and excersise can promote cognitive development

_ Being out of work, retirement or in a non-demanding job may cause deterioration of memory

_ Low income and low-quality of lifestyle can lead to stress and loss of concentration

Emotional:

+ Being in a high status job and having a good income and education may lead to positive self-image and positive self-esteem

+ Having an adequate income and job provides opportunities and independence 

_ Being unemployed, having a low status job and poor academic achievement can lead to poor lifestyle choices, negative self-image and low self-esteem

_ Low income and poor health due to lifestyle can lead to lack of choice and independence

_ Concerns about lack of work or finances can lead to stress

Social:

+ Being at school, college, or in training or work provides opportunities to develop friendships

+ Being able to afford a healthy lifestyle can lead to friendships

_ Low income or unemployment offers fewer opportunities for building relationships

_ Poor lifestyle may lead for breakdown in relationships. 

Everyone experiences major events during their life. These can be predictable or unpredictable depending on the person's life course. 

Examples of life events:

- moving house, starting school, starting a family, marriage, divorce, promotion, leaving a home, injury, retirement, changing employment.

Types of transition:

Life events are also known as transitions. 

Physical: change of environment, workplace, school, home

Emotional: personal experiences, marriage, divorce, bereavement

Intellectual: college, university and job promotion

Physiological: puberty, injury, health conditions 

What are predictable life events?

- Likely to happen to most peoplem such as starting school or work

- Can be anticipated or prepared for

- Predictable events often have positive effects such as building self-esteem, developing confidence, providing security or furthering learning. However, the changes can still cause anxiety, which may affect health and wellbeing. 

What are unpredictable life events?

- Not expected, such as an accident or serious illness

_ Happen with little or no warning so cannot be prepared for. 

Some life events will happen to many people but not everyone, e.g. marriage, having children, promotion or serious illness. 

Life events can cause stress that results in health problems. The level of stress depends on the event, the situation of the individual and their ability to cope with the demands of life. 

Life events can impact on health and wellbeing:

- Headaches/migranes, anxiety, mental health problems, heart conditions, high blood pressure, stress/sleeping difficulties, digestive problems

Holmes-Rahe social adjustment rating scale: they believed there was a correlation between psychological illness and stressful events. 

- Holmes and Rahe listed 43 life events that individuals may experience

- They applied a score to each life event, depending on the level of stress it was likely to cause

- Patients were asked to indicate life events they had experienced from the list

- Patients added up the scores from their life events 

Results of the study: Holmes and Rahe found there was a correlation between the number of units (level and number of stress events the individual experiences) and their illness. 

Predictable and unpredictable: these can cause stress at any life stage. Extreme stress from unpredictable life events can cause serious mental and physical problems.

Events listed by Holmes and Rahe:

-Death of partner = 100 units

- Marriage = 50 units

- Retirement = 45units

- Change of school = 20 units 

The risk of cardiovascular disease increases with age, but the likelihood may be increased or reduced by other factors.

Changes in the heart with ageing:

1. Heart may increase in size, causing the heart wall to thicken, making it more difficult for the heart msucles to relax and fill with blood between beats

2. Artery walls narrow due to clogging by fats called cholesterol, preventing blood from passing easily

3. Pacemaker cells decrease causing problems in  the rhythm of the heart

4. The valves inside the heart that control the flow of blood thicken and become stiffer

These changes increase the likelihood of angina, hypertension, heart murmers, stroke, heart attack and heart failure. 

Factors affecting cardiovascular health in older age:

Health factors that can exacerbate heart disease: high blood cholesterol, diabetes, genetic inheritance, obestiy, high blood pressure

Lifestyle factors that can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease: smoking, alcohol, diet high in salt, lack of excersise, diet high in saturated fats

The effects of cardiovascular disease in later life:

Positive effects: closer relationships with family members and friends, choosing to improve lifestyle

Negative effects: loss of independence, anxiety about health, depression, anger, frustration, reduced mobility, loss of opportunitiy to develop new friendships 

Nerves are pathways that carry messages along the spinal cord between the brain and the different parts of the body. The loss of neurons in the brain leads to a decrease in the capacity of the brain to send and recieve nerve impulses. 

Degeneration of nervous tissue causes:

- increase in time to react, difficulty in recieving and processing info, decline in short-term memory, decline in verbal capactiy, effects on senses, reduction in reflexes and movement

Facts abour nervous tissues:

- the pace of degeneration varies between older people

- the same symptoms may be caused by illnesses such as Alzheimers

- the brain can produce new brain cells into older age e.g. stroke patients can learn to speak again

- new connects between nerve cells can develop

- Excerise, non-smoking and cognitive activity can slow down the degeneration of the nervous tissue in older people

Loss of neurones and degenerative diseases: loss of neurones from structures of the brain that control movement can cause degenerative diseases such as Parkisons. The average age for the onset of Parkinsons is 60. 

Parkinsons disease: affects neurons in an area of the brain called the nigra. As the neurons die, the production of a chemical called dopamine increases. Dopamine sends messages to the part of the brain that controls movement and coordination.

Physical effects: tremor: uncontrollable shaking, beginning in the hands and arm, mobility: slowness of movement and muscle stiffness

Cognitive effects: depression, anxiety and impairment in thinking and problem-solving 

The senses help individuals to recieve information from the environment. As we get older our senses become less sharp. 

1: Taste: with age, the number of taste buds decreases reducing the enjoyment of food and perhaps resulting in a poor diet, production of saliva decreases affecting the taste and enjoyment of food and the ability to smell decreases reducing the ability to detect dangerous odours such as fumes or foods that have gone off

2. Touch: a decrease in the number of receptor cells in older age leads too: reduced sensitivity to temperature which can lead to burns, frostbite, reduced sensitivity to injury whuch can lead to untreated pressure sores or ulcers, increased sensitivity to touch which can cause bruising and skin becoming more sensitive to sun which can lead to cancer and sunburn. 

3: Sight: with age, vision becomes less sharp, cataracts may develop which causes cloudiness in vision, the vitreous (gel substance) in the eye starts to shrink causing floaters, peripheral vision deteriorates, eye muscles become weaker, reducing the field of vision, pupils react more slowly in bright light or darkness and there is an increased risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) which causes a gradual loss of sight. 

4. Hearing: with age, fluid-filled tubes in the inner ear which help to maintain balance becomes affected which may cause dizziness and falls, the ability to hear high-frequency sounds deteriorates, distinguishing between sounds is more difficult and tinnitus (persistent noise) is experienced because of a build-up of wax or damage to the ear. 

Social and emotional effects of degeneration of sense organs:

-low self-image, depression, anxiety

-loss of independence, reduced opportunities for socalising because of difficulty in travelling/driving

- isolation, difficulty in joing in conversations

- difficulty in taking part in leisure activities e.g. listening to music, reading. 

Two common physicla effects in older age are osteoarthiritis and a reduction in the absorption of nutrition.

What is oesteoarthiritis?

The physical effects are: swelling and pain in joints, damage to the soft tissue around joints, difficulty in walking and difficulty in climbing stairs

The risk of osteoarthiritis is increased by: being over 40, obesity, injury to joints, genetic inheritence, being female and joint abnormality

Absorption of nutrients: with age, the body is less efficient at absoprin the nutrients it requires. This can result in malnutrition even if the person's diet remains the same when they were younger. The reduction of the absoprtion of nutrients is caused by:

- reduced production of gastric hydrochloric acid, which prevents the breakdown of proteins, fats and carbohydrates

- the deteroriation of the function of the digestive organs and digestive lining

The effects of deficiences in essential nutrients:

- Vitamin D: increases risk of osteoprosis, cancer and diabetes and reduces the body's ability to absorb calcium

- Calcium: causes bone loss and increases the risk of osteoporosis and fractures

- Vitamin B2: slows the creation of red blood cells and reduces nerve function

- Magnesium: impacts on the immune system and function of the heart

- Omega-3: increases the risk of rheumatoid arthiritis and macular degeneration

- Potassium: weakens bones and reduces cell function and kidney function

- Vitamin C: slows healing and the development of healthy tissue

- Iron: increases the risk of anemia

Dementia is a term that is used to describe symptoms associated with damage to the funnction of the brain such as memory loss.

Facts:

- A stroke may cause dementia because the brain's blood supply is restricted and brain cells begin to die

- Lifestyle factors such as smoking, an unhealthy diet and lack of excersise can increase the risk of dementia

- Dementia is a progressive disease and more parts of the brain are damaged over time

- Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia.

Alzheimer's disease: mainly affects people over the age of 65. Proteins called plaques and tangles build up in the brain. This leads to a shortage of chemicals in the brain which affects the transmission of signals.

The effects of Alzheimer's disease:

- Early stages: decline in the short-term memory, difficulty in completing routine tasks and impairment in thinking/problem-solving

- Later stage: language impairment, lack of judgement, emotional outbursts, changes in behaviour and agitation

- Final stage: unable to recognise family members, unable to feed or care for self, lack of control of bodily functions, almost total loss of memory and death.

Support needs for Alzheimer's disease:

Early stage: informal help with everyday tasks, medication, counsellng, memory clinics

Later stage: specalist nurse visits, respite care, medication and support in the home

Final stage: residental/hospice care, personal/continence care and end-of-life care

The physical effects of illness impact on all other areas in a person's development.

Physical effects: make the body less able to fight infection, reduce stamina, result in lost mobility, cause pain and discomfort, impact on the senses making them less sharp and affect vision and cause dizziness that could lead to falls.

Intellectual: cause short-term memory loss, affect decision-making skills, slow the ability to respond and react to information and cause difficulty in verbal communication

Social: reduce the opportunity to socialse with friends, impact on the senses or neural capacity, making socalisation difficult and affect ability to communicate in groups

Emotional: causes emotional distress e.g. incontinuence communication difficulties, result in dependence on others for personal care, causes feelings of lack of control, bring families close together and result in low self-esteem

Lifestyle choices may improve or exacebrate the impact of ill health on older people.

- Healthy diet: provides the additional nutrients needed to reduce a decline in health and maintains a healthy weight to reduce stress on the heart and other organs

- Exercise: keeps the joints mobile, maintains muscle and strength and keeps the heart healthy

- Drugs: Medication that is prescribed correctly should control illness and not make it worse, taking recreational drugs can negatively affect intellectual deveopment and mood, not smoking reduces the impact of age-related diseases.

Social change in older age cna bring about a sense of loss, anxiety, reduced confidence and low self-esteem.

Social changes:

- Loss of job and status: retirement may reduce self-esteem because of a feeling of lack of purpose, but increases leisure time and opportunitities to try new things such as travel, enjoy grandchildren and hobbies.

- Reduced mobility/fitness: inability to move around and continue to carry out physical tasks can result in cognitive decline and reduce wellbeing.

- Loss of independence: reliance on others increases a feeling of helplessness.

 - Reduced access to social networks: difficulty in meeting an taking part in social activities can prevent development of the brain, cause or worsen depression and any other mental conditions

- Losing own home: affects contentment and security when forced to move e.g. residental home

- Death of partner/friends: grief can cause a loss of sense of safety and security, increased isolation and loss of intimacy.

Financial concerns: research by Age UK has shown that in 2016, 29% of retired people did not have financial concerns and 26% were just getting by.This means that almost half of the older population do have financial concerns with 14% living in poverty. This can lead to:

- less opportunity to socalise, less money to buy food, less money to pay for adequate heating and worry and stress.

Loneliness and depression: 36% of people over 65 years live alone. Taking advantage of free bus travel or continue to drive can help older adults to feel part of the community, and reduce the feeling of loneliness and dependence.

Self-esteem: health, employment and financial security are esstential for high self-esteem. If these things are lost, and individual can feel like they are no longer useful, no longer independent, financially insecure and anxious about how to pay for things.

Effects of culture, religion and beliefs:

These can have a positive impact on ageing because individuals feel part of a community and feel less isolated, beliefs help people to make sense of their ageing and come to terms with morality, some cultures and religions place more value on older people.

Ageing is a natural process that takes place over a long period of time. Theories help to explain what is happening during the process.

Activity theory: individuals can achieve healthy ageing through continued social activity.

Robert Havighurst states that: social and psychological needs of individuals remain the same, people need activitiy and social interactions, individuals adjust to their declinng health and mobility or strength and people continue to involve themselves in the community.

Social disengagement theory: a reduction in social contact is natural in older age

States that: people naturally withdraw from social contact in older age, society withdraws from older people, people focus on their previous life and activities, family expects less from older people, older people become more dependent and ageing can result in tranquility and be a positive development.

Getting the most out of life:

Older people an be supported to continue to get satisfaction from life by encouraging:

+ involvement in new activities such as hobbies and volunteering

+ the planning of new goals

+ the development of new relationships

+ decision making and choices about their own care

The number of older people has increased. They have specific health and social care needs and rely on a range of different services to meet their needs and help them to remain independent.

Provision for older people is needed for:

- age-related diseases, increased risk/injuries, loss of independence, age-related conditions

- prevention of slowing od age-related diseases and illnesses, prevention of isolation

- chronic conditions and loss of mobility

What type of provision is available?

1. Acute care: meeting immediate health needs, such as broken hips and heart attacks

2. Healthcare: medication, support for long-term conditions, contience care, specalist units

3. Social care: own home, day care, residential, accessing needs, supporting independence, respite, personal care

4. Community equipment: keeping people mobile and independent in their own home e.g. mobility aids, aids for daily living

5. Psychological care: counsellors, mental health nursing

6. Benefits and entitlements: adaptions to home, transport to and from appointments, financial support

7. End-of-life care: pain relief, psychological support

Provisions of help maintain health: healthy monitoring and screening, influenza immunisation, winter fuel and cold weather payments, rehabiliation after stay in hospital, occupational therapy, provision of social and leisure activities.

Integrated services: Older people may need different services to work together to access and provide for their health and care needs. Formal (private, statuory, voluntary) and informal (family, community or religious groups) services are integrated to provide a holisitc care package.

Life expectancy has increased each decade over the last 100 yeats and the birth rate has fallen. This means there are more older people, which increases pressure on the economics of the UK.

An ageing population in the UK:

- Life expectancy is now 79.2 years for males and 83.3 years for females

- There are as many people over 65 years old as under 16 years old

- One in three babies born today will reach 100 years of age

- The old age dependency ratio has risen.

Old age dependency ratio: describes the ratio of people older than 65 to the number of people of working age, which is defined as between 15 and 64. An increase in the older population and longer life expectancy has resulted in fewer people of working age being available to support the needs of older people.

What the changes mean for the economy:

1: Health and welfare: older people already use more health care services. a rise in numbers means a higher demand and increased costs

2. Pensions costs: more people recieve pensions leaving less money for economic investment

3: Employment: more retired people means shortage of skilled workers, there are changes to working patterns as older people prefer part-time work

4: Housing: more retirement homes and sheltered housing are required. People stay in their own homes longer so fewer larger homes are available for families.

Government responses:

- raising retirement age

- making it easier for older people to stay in work or work part time

- encouraging people in work to take out private pensions

- increasing taxes to pay for state pensions and welfare

Pressures on services:

- advances in medicine to help people live longer

- families being unable or less willing to take care of older members of the family

- increase in the number of older people with chronic condiitons

Government responses:

- raising retirement age

- making it easier for older people to stay in work or work part time

- encouraging people in work to take out private pensions

- increasing taxes to pay for state pensions and welfare

Pressures on services:

- advances in medicine to help people live longer

- families being unable or less willing to take care of older members of the family

- increase in the number of older people with chronic condiitons