Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1960) are still
a force and the last batch is approaching their 60’s and is close to retiring
if they haven’t already done this. So, the big question facing us, individually
and as a society is
Are we as individuals and communities
ready for an ageing population?
To examine this question, the National Council on
Ageing (NCOA), UnitedHealthcare and USA TODAY created The United States of Ageing
Survey. In its inaugural year, the survey included 2,250 U.S. adults aged 60
and older who shared their perspectives on their own individual readiness for
ageing as well as their perceptions of their community’s resources for senior residents.
Over the next few posts, I will look at some of the responses to that question
in specific areas. The question I thought was interesting is what do we prefer
to be called. When asked to choose the best word or phrase to describe people
their age, a quarter of respondents selected senior citizens. Other leading
choices were seniors‖ (18 percent), ―retirees, (15 percent) and older
Americans‖ (11 percent).
Caregiving
Seniors
are not only receiving long-term care – they are providing it, too. Half of
older Americans report having someone they consider to be a caregiver in their
lives – and close to one-third (28 percent) of seniors say they serve as a
caregiver for someone else. According to the survey:
·
Nearly nine in 10 (87 percent)
older Americans who have a caregiver say they are receiving care from a family
member.
·
More than half of those caregivers
(52 percent) live at home with their care recipient.
·
Among those seniors who do not
currently have a caregiver, 39 percent believe it is likely that they will need
one of their children or grandchildren to serve as their caregiver in the
future.
·
Forty-five percent of respondents
who serve as a caregiver for someone else report that they would benefit from
additional services to support them, such as respite care.
·
While 61 percent of these
caregivers are aware that there is a service in their community that they could
call to request assistance with everyday needs, only 15 percent report having
utilized such services.
·
An additional 22 percent of
seniors are unsure if such services exist in their communities.
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