Older Adult Health Issues
1. Demographic and Statistics Data
2. Effects of poverty
3. Nutritional Services
4. General Health Problems
5. Socialization
6. Well-elderly clinics
REQUIRED READINGS (PLUS THOSE INBEDDED IN NOTES)
Hunger and food security among older adults in a rural community
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3800/is_199904/ai_n8834639/pg_9?tag=artBody;col1.
Nutritional risk assessment and obesity in rural adults: a sex difference
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/77/3/551.
Additional information on rural older adults
Rural Retirement Communities
http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/ricpubs/retire.html
Rural older adult learners
http://www.joe.org/joe/1987winter/rb1.html
Oral health status of older rural adults in the United States
http://jada.ada.org/cgi/content/full/134/4/479
Rural Assistance Center Older Adult Information Page
http://www.raconline.org/search/search_results.php?topic=older+adults&Submit2=Search
Nutritional risk assessment and obesity in rural older adults: a sex difference
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/77/3/551
Creating Healthy and Vital Rural Communities for an Aging Population
http://www.nrharural.org/conferences/pdf/07ACHandouts/4G%20All.pdf
Physical Activity in Older, Rural, Hispanic, and Non-Hispanic White Adults
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/506931
Enhanced quality of life for rural older Americans
http://www.ers.usda.gov/Emphases/Rural/
(From Growing old in rural America: new approach needed in rural health care)
Rural elderly have a greater incidence of chronic health conditions, such as arthritis, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and diabetes than their urban counterparts.
Minority rural elders have poorer health than other rural elders.
Most rural elders who are still living on the farm have much better health than most older people, with the exception of elevated risks for several forms of cancer, including Hodgkin’s disease, multiple myeloma, leukemia, melanoma, and cancers of the lip, stomach and prostate.
Rural elderly who do not live on farms have the worst health status of all older people. The “nonfarm rural elderly” have the highest number of medical problems and restrictions in their daily life as measured by activities of daily living (ADLs, e.g., bathing and eating) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs, e.g., shopping and housework). Nonfarm rural elders also experience the most functional limitations, such as difficulty walking a quarter of a mile or up 10 steps without resting. Another measure, “self-perceived health,” is somewhat poorer for both farm and nonfarm elders than for urban seniors.
HEALTH PROBLEMS IN RURAL OLDER ADULTS:
http://www.gerontology.vt.edu/docs/RuralPolicyBriefFinal.pdf
Coordination and Advocacy for Rural Elders (CARE)
http://gerontologist.gerontologyjournals.org/cgi/content/full/42/3/399
Nutrition from LeeAnn
Nutrition Issues Among the Rural Elderly
A.)Perry County, KY background information
• Land area of 342 square miles
• Population (1990)- 30,283; 5416 reside in the county’s only rural area Hazard; In 2000, population dropped to 29,390
• Population density is 86 people/square mile with 37 housing units/square mile
• 98% is European American
• 10% aged 65 and older
• Nearest metro area is 100 miles away-Lexington, KY
• Representative of many counties in Appalachia
B.)Factors Identified as Being Associated With Food Consumption
• Gender
• Income
o Having an income less than 150% of the poverty level was a strong indicator of food consumption
• Age
• Living Arrangements
C.) Indicators of Food Security
• No food
• Skipping meals
• Choosing medications or food
• Choosing bills or food
• Personal action
D.) Participation in Government Funded Food Programs
• 4% reported current regular participation in congregate meal programs
• 3% received home– delivered meals
• 11 % received food stamps or lived with someone who did
E.) Barriers to Government Funded Food Programs
• Elderly persons live as far as 25 miles from the meal sites on roads that are extremely hazardous in winter and spring
• Home-delivered meals are similarly hampered by distance, terrain, and the cost of transportation
• Elders whose need for home-delivered meals is based on isolation or poverty may be displaced on waiting lists by those with more acute illnesses or disabilities
Using the readings above please answer these 2 questions:
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Identify a health problem (heart disease) and explain how inadequate nutrition is affected by it.
2. Using your topic in question 1, explain the impact on health care delivery in the rural setting and the role of the a specific health care professional (nurse and a nurse practitioner).
