Aging and the Elderly Essay Example for Free

Aging and the Elderly Essay Aging is the length of time during which a being or thing has existed length of life (Webster dictionary). Growing old and becoming an elderly person can be challenging but, yet it can be very rewarding, it can bring a lot of good and bad. Aging has its rewards, but it presents the challenges of all stages of life. Growing old consist of gradual, ongoing changes in the body, changes such as shrinking in height in which the elderly tends to get shorter as he or she age. Elderly people tends to have less appetite which causes them to lose weight, and a decline in strength and vitality, which can sometimes make them feels very weak at times and needs either a cane or a walker or even someone to help assist them in walking. The life expectancy in the United States is going up which means people are living longer than before due to better medications that are out there which have raised the living standards. The life expectancy in the United States in the 1900’s for women would be to live only forty eight years, and for a male the life expectancy in the United States would be to live only forty- six years, as study shows that women in the U.S lives longer than men. Now females can be expected to live eighty years plus and men can be expected to live to be seventy-five years old. Greater material wealth and advances in medicine have raised living standards so that people benefit from better housing and nutrition. Medical advances have almost eliminated infectious diseases such as smallpox, measles, and diphtheria which had killed many infants and children many years ago. (John Macionis, 2009). As life becomes longer, the oldest segment of the United States population, people over the age of eighty-five years of age is increasing rapidly and is forty times greater than in nineteen hundreds. As the average age of the population rises and the share over age sixty-five climbs ever higher, culture patterns are more likely to change, age segregation will decline as the elderly population increases, the younger population, will see more of the older population where the younger population usually are, such as malls, sporting events, and etc. Elders in the United States are men and women of all races, classes, and ethnic backgrounds. There are two types of elderly, the younger elderly, which are between the ages of sixty-five and seventy-five and lives independently with good health and financial security whom are likely to live in a house with each other as couples, then, there are the older elderly whom are past the age of seventy-five, most likely to live with a family member (usually a daughter), have health problems and financial insecurity being divorce or a widow. As someone ages there are a lot of biological and psychological changes that happens in their life, such things as Gray hair, wrinkles, and etc. The ability to learn new materials and think quickly declines. Although, aging is more visible internal, there are a lot more of internal effects of aging as well, which are more critical. As we all age, it is important for us to know the normal course of aging. What happens to us as we age? As we age, health problems start to rise at about or over the age of seventy-five, women typically lives longer than men, they tend to suffer more from chronic disabilities like arthritis. The brain As a person age and becomes an elderly, their brain undergoes different structural changes, the brain regions shrinks and becomes filled with fluid, aging impairs the ability of the brain to encode new memories and facts, while processing speed and reflexes decline. The aging of the brain can cause neurological diseases like Parkinson, Lou Gehrig’s disease and Alzheimer. Age-related changes occur in two regions of the brain. The first region is the frontal lobe, which is the area of the brain behind the forehead and the eyes. It is felt that certain memory process supported by this region degenerate with age. The other region affected by age is a C-shaped area deep inside the brain, which is known as the hippocampus, there is where there, is a dramatic deterioration of explicit memory capacities supported by this region as we get older. Intergumentary system The skin develops wrinkles and dark spots, skin becomes very easy to tear, and saggy because of the ability of the skin to produce oil, the skin becomes very dry and lusterless. The aging process affects groups of cells within hair follicle. Hair becomes thinner, hair color changes from its normal color to gray then eventually to white as cells quit functioning. Aging affects the bone strength to decline, friction between joints increases which causes pain while they move. There becomes a loss of density and strength due to porous. There is a depletion of minerals like calcium and phosphorus which makes the bones weak and fragile easily to have bone fracture which can cause an elderly person to be wheelchair or bedbound for life. Eyes, Ears (senses) Our vision changes as we age, objects appear blurred or unable to be seen. The combined alterations of the cornea, iris, lens and ciliary bodies can account for most of the age-related changes in our visual perception. The pupils become less responsive and more sensitive to glare. The iris gets stiffened, cataracts and glaucoma becomes common, we don’t see as well as we use to. The lens thickens and takes o a yellowish hue, which reduces the ability to discriminate colors in the green-blue-violet range. Most elderly people then need glasses or even a magnifying glass in order to be able to see, especially when reading. Hearing is loss because the eardrum thickens, ear cells can be damage, and in that case a hearing aid is needed in order for the elderly person to hear. Cardiovascular system What happens to the heart as we age? There is a decline in the cardiac capacity. The cardiac stroke volume rate goes down, oxygen consumption declines. Heart muscles relaxes less between beats (becomes stiffer), heart may not pump blood as efficiently, walls may thickens, and becomes less elastic, reflex that maintain blood pressure upon standing up may becomes slower. Types of heart diseases that are more common in the elderly are heart failure, isolated systolic hypertension, aortic stenosis, sick sinus syndrome, atrial fibrillation and even stroke. Digestive system The digestive system start weaken gradually, the elderly sometimes have trouble digesting foods, their diet becomes different with age, much fiber is then needed in their diet. The digestive system looses efficiency, teeth lost, and oral diseases increases with age. Esophagus wears down with time, making swallowing difficult, sphincter muscles in the stomach weakens. Digestive muscles lose some of its flexibility with age and cause an elderly unable to swallow. Reproductive system and Urinary system The reproductive system, hormones levels changes in elderly people. The change in the reproductive system changes the effect of the urinary system functions. In the urinary system, the kidneys gets smaller with age, blood flow is reduced, sensation of needed to urinate is often delayed in some people, in other elderly people they can become very unable to hold urine and have to go to the bathroom often. As we age, some of us go through social isolation, meaning that we do not have any kind of contact with anyone, whether it is by not going out or not wanting anyone to visit. Social isolation brings depression in the elderly which is why many elderly are taking antidepressants to lift up their moods along with other medicine. Sometimes the cause of social isolation can be because of the death of their significant other, lost of income due to retiring, not getting enough money which can be the reason why the elderly people are in poverty. Elderly women especially tends to hide poverty and keep it to themselves, they do not want anyone to know because of their personal pride, they want to remain independent, not having to depend on family members for survival needs. Care giving A caregiver gives care to anyone that is unable to care for themselves. When an elderly becomes unable to care for his or herself, family members have to figure out how they are going to be able to care for him or her. Usually the daughter of the elderly person takes care of them; if not then it would probably the daughter in law. There are several aspects that are involved in taking care of the elderly. Most caregivers spend more than twenty hours per week providing care, if the elderly person that needs care is a total need, then care giving can be a twenty four hours seven days a week job, Which can be a burden on the caregiver. The caregiver provides care such as bathing, shaving, running errands such as dropping off, and picking up medication, preparing nourishing meals, doing the laundry, shopping for groceries, and etc. Many caregivers experiences mental and physical fatigue, emotional distress, and guilt over not being able to do more. The caregiver being so stressed out can sometimes abuse the elderly if the work is found to be too difficult, which can go unreported at times. Now there are many state charitable institutions where you can place the elderly such as nursing homes, adult day cares, assisted livings, hospice which depends on whether or not the elderly is terminally ill, and etc. Many people fear of placing their love one in nursing homes because, they fear the abuse that goes on in there, so therefore they can either pay a private sitter to care for their love one or they would have to give up their jobs to care for them. Lastly, death is the final stage in the life of an elderly; usually death can be from being very ill, or very old. When death occurs, family members grieve at the same time they feel a sense of relieve from having to take care of that person and having to give up their social life in order to care for that individual. My experiences: In working on, my research paper, I have learned a lot about the elderly. Something’s I may have already know because I am a certified nursing assistant, I have been working as a nursing assistant for ten years now. As a certified nursing assistant my job is to provide personal care such as bathing, shaving, shampooing hair, assisting with medicine, and running errands. Being a certified nursing assistant is a very challenging job but, it is a very rewarding job, it makes me feel good to see that I am able to make a difference in someone else’s life, and to be able to help someone. I enjoy what I do although, it is a stressful job, but just putting myself in their shoes makes me feel that it is a job worth doing. Some of the elderly people can be sweet and lovable, some can be a bit mean, and their attitudes sometimes have to do with their illness. To me I think even though it is not easy to be an elderly, having to deal with so much such as health issues, ageism, poverty, depending on other people to care for you, It is a blessing to live to be old, knowing that you have seen perhaps your third generation. References Articlebase.com (2011, Elderly care) Dictionary.com, (Aging). Retrieved August 16, 2011. http://www.everydayhealth.com http://www.righthealth.com Macionis, J.(2009)

Judaism in William Finns Falsettoland Essay -- Jewish Religion Religi

Judaism in William Finn's Falsettoland Judaism and Jewish culture have always been central to William Finn, writer of a trilogy of short works following Marvin, a homosexual living within the Jewish faith. Falsettoland itself forms the final part of the trilogy whilst In Trousers and March of the Falsettos are the first two instalments respectively. Christianity condemns homosexuality within its faith, therefore, surely Judaism would take a moral stand and condemn any theatrical portrayal of such events? Did the Reform movement which began to grow in America in the 1830s have any effect upon the time Falsettoland was written, and, if so, how was Falsettoland as a music theatre work subject to such effects? From the outset it is important to define the boundaries within which the term ‘Judaism’ and ‘Reform Judaism’ will be used. This paper focuses upon Judaism (be it Orthodox or Reform) within America and does not focus upon the origins of Judaism in Europe. Although perhaps some beliefs and moral standings were reflected across the Atlantic, for the purposes of this argument this will be negligible. When analysing the musical content of Falsettoland it is important that one does not get carried away on the intended meaning, although only suggested as a guide and personal response to the music, the analysis is by no means definite and as the author intended. We’re free to borrow from both European operatic tradition and American musical tradition, toss out what we don’t need and invent whatever creature we want, whatever we choose. And above all else, entertain.[1] Jewish life in America changed dramatically throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The majority of Jews being those wit... ...omosexuality? http://urj.org/ask/homosexuality/> Ø Storr, A. Music and the Mind (HarperCollins, 1997) Ø Volkman, E. A Legacy of Hate: Anti-Semitism in America (Franklin Watts, 1982) Discography =========== Ø Finn, W. Falsettoland (New York: DRG Records Inc, 1990) --------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] LaChiusa, M.J. ‘I Sing of America’s Mongrel Culture’ in New York Times 14 November 1999) [2] Finn, W. Vocal selections from Falsettos (Warner Bros Publications Inc, 1992) p.86 [3] Storr, A. Music and the Mind (London: HarperCollins, 1997) p.187 [4] Rossoff, R.D. What is Judaism’s view on Homosexuality? Accessed 10 January 2005 [5] Katz, L.. ‘What is a Bar Mitzvah?’ In Your Guide to Judaism [6] Volkman, E. A Legacy of Hate: Anti-Semitism in America (Franklin Watts, 1982) p.10

Impact of online shopping on shopping centres in Australia Essay

Module 2 How would you define the industry to be analysed? Is the industry global? Is the organization mentioned Australian or overseas based? Can you make any inferences about the industry value chain from the article? What are the key product and services segments in the industry that are mentioned in the article? Are you able to identify the stage of the industry life-cycle from the facts in the article? What have been the remote environment trends that have driven the industry to its current state? Are these factors changing? What will be their impact on future growth in the industry? Remember an article may only make reference to some of the factors in the remote environment. What are the forces within the industry that determine the current profitability of the industry? Are these forces changing? What will be their impact on the future profitability of the industry? Again, remember an article may only make reference to some of the forces in the external industry environment. Does the article make any reference to the different customer market segments in the industry, and can you make an assessment of what drives customer demand in them? Given your remote and industry environment analyses, and your customer and market analysis, are you able to assess the basis of competition in the industry? What are the key factors that are critical for the organisation to do well in order to be successful? Are there any strategic groups that organisations in the industry compete in? Analyse the competitors if mentioned in the article, to gain a clear and specific profile of each major competitor in the industry. Module 3 Who are the key stakeholders of the organisation, and what are their  expectations from the organisation? What is the current business strategy of the organisation? Are you able to assess how the organisation has performed to date in meeting its objectives based on the given facts? Identify the capabilities of the organisation in the context of the competitive environment, and analyse them to determine whether these capabilities are strategic capabilities. Determine whether there are any inconsistencies (gaps) between the current business strategy and the remote environment, the industry environment and the performance of the organisation compared to its key competitors. Review the current business strategy against the expectations of the key stakeholders, the organisation s performance and the capabilities of the organisation. A review of these gaps, and an extended SWOT analysis, may reveal some possible alternatives and strategies that the organisation could pursue. These will often relate to improving the operational side of the organisation, while strategic growth options usually fall into the category of new products and/or new markets, which is discussed in Module 4. Module 4 Consider whether the organisation has leveraged its existing capabilities to its maximum market position and market penetration. Does the article indicate any strategy regarding development of new products or expanding its markets to remain competitive and/or to grow? Or is it possible that the company is taking another approach to growth (e.g. vertical integration)? If the organisation is considering new product development, review the important aspects to consider, including the key success factors for new product development. If the organisation is considering new market development, is the organisation trying to enter a new customer or geographic market, or both? Review the important considerations for new market development, including the strategic objectives for new market entry, evaluating the attractiveness of new markets, the key success factors for new market development and the advantages and disadvantages of different modes of market entry. Consider the accounting challenges that moving into new products or markets are likely to bring. Module 5 Evaluate each of the strategic options, such as different product and market options, on the basis of appropriate criteria, having regard for effective management of the organisation’s portfolio of projects. What are the risks assessed for each of the strategic options? Scenario planning should be undertaken in order to quantify and compare the variation in their potential outcomes. Evaluate each of the strategic options in terms of their consistency with the organisation’s external and internal environments, the feasibility of successfully undertaking the option and the competitive advantage it will give the organisation. Make the recommendations to key decision makers of which strategic options to adopt, demonstrating the alignment of the options to the business strategy and providing information on the benefits, risks and key steps in implementing the options. Module 6 What challenges is the organisation likely to face, or is currently experiencing, in implementing its strategies? How has the organisation performed in its implementation of the strategy? Determine the fit between the desired strategy and the business systems of the organisation, the organisational structure and the internal politics of the organisation. Is there a good fit between the desired strategy and the organisational culture? Consider any cross-cultural issues for the organisation. How is and/or should the process of change be implemented in the organisation? Module 7 Has the organisation considered any misalignments with all the interconnected 7- aspects of the implementation plan? Review the nature and the scale of change required to gain an understanding of the type of leadership required to lead it. How has, or should have, the leader performed in their strategic analysis, selection and implementation role?

Communism, Capitalism, and Socialism Essay - 652 Words

Three different types of economic systems used by governments are Communism, Capitalism, and Socialism. Each type of system is unique in different ways. Each has distinct aspects that make it what it is. In communism, the government runs everything and there are no social classes. The government in capitalism doesn’t interfere with any businesses and lets the citizens own and operate them. Socialism is basically a mixture of the two economic systems. The government runs certain businesses, but citizens run the rest. The three economic systems are different in the way they run things and regulate things. Communism is an economic system developed by Karl Marx. Communism, also called Marxism, is an economic system used by†¦show more content†¦It is the economic system used by a government that regulates only certain businesses for the welfare of the citizens. The government normally only regulates housing, education, food, and medical issues. Since that is all the government regulates, private citizens are allowed to own businesses. However, the income of these businesses is controlled thru taxes. The strength of socialism is that the government has more control over businesses and can regulate what happens in them. The weakness is that people interested in owning a business in the area of housing, education, food, or medical issues cannot. All the three economic systems are different in unique ways. The most effective out of the three economic systems is capitalism. It is the most effective for a few reasons. First, people are allowed to own any type of business they want. In socialism they can’t own a variety of businesses because the government runs them. In communism, no one can own a business because the government owns everything. If people are allowed to own any type of business that they want and keep the profits of the business, they will want to work harder then they would under communism or socialism. 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