Full Description
Current projections indicate that by 2050 the number of people aged over 80 years old will rise to 395 million and that by this date 25-30% of people over the age of 85 will show some degree of cognitive decline. Palliative care for older people: A public health perspective provides a comprehensive account of the current state of palliative care for older people worldwide and illustrates the range of concomitant issues that, as the global population ages, will ever more acutely shape the decisions of policy-makers and care-givers.
The book begins by outlining the range of policies towards palliative care for older people that are found worldwide. It follows this by examining an array of socio-cultural issues and palliative care initiatives, from the care implications of health trajectories of older people to the spiritual requirements of palliative care patients, and from the need to encourage compassion towards end-of-life care within communities to the development of care pathways for older people.
Palliative care for older people: A public health perspective is a valuable resource for professionals and academics in a range of healthcare and public health fields to understand the current state of policy work from around the world. The book also highlights the social-cultural considerations that influence the difficult decisions that those involved in palliative care face, not least patients themselves, and offers examples of good practice and recommendations to inspire, support, and direct healthcare policy and decision-making at organisational, regional, national and international levels.
Contents
PART I PALLIATIVE CARE FOR OLDER PEOPLE : AN INTRODUCTION ; PART II ORGANIZATION OF AND POLICIES FOR PALLIATIVE CARE FOR OLDER PEOPLE ; PART III SOCIO-CULTURAL AND CLINICAL CONTEXT OF DYING IN OLD AGE ; PART IV USE AND ACCESS OF PALLIATIVE CARE FOR OLDER PEOPLE ; PART V INNOVATIONS IN PALLIATIVE CARE FOR OLDER PEOPLE ; PART V CONCLUSION: WHAT DOES A PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACH TO IMPROVING PALLIATIVE CARE IN OLDER PEOPLE LOOK LIKE?
