44 The QUEE NS Courier • wellness • SEPTEMBER 15, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com WELLNESS s DISABILITY/QUALITY OF LIFE AND AGING Quality of life is much sought by everyone, much so by the elderly. However, disability distorts their quality of life and necessitates the use of various avenues of social services. To understand how health and social services relate to quality of life for the elderly, I wish to introduce the term “macro-indicator.” A macro-indicator, according to those who ply the world of statistics, speaks about “the larger picture.” The term attempts to answer the question: what contributes to a reduced disability among the elderly population but an increase in medical spending? This is where government and policymakers play an important role. And it further questions, how does health policy affect the elderly in an emotional dimension? For some time, numerous studies have suggested that disability among the elderly population is falling. This further suggests that the elderly can still be gainfully employed beyond the much touted “age of retirement.” Some of the reasons are varied, i.e. improved medical and technological innovations. An example of this is the use of bone growth stimulators to help build broken bones that are not healing properly, and the use of a variety of supportive aids like stair lifts and wheelchair ramps that make it accessible for wheelchair patients to independently leave their homes. There are also opportunities for public education on healthy dietary decisions and lifestyle modification. A close association with family and friends is also important because it contributes to a reduction of unnecessary emotional stress. According to the Center for Disease Control, the average life span in the U.S. is 75.2 years for males and 81 years for females. Because history has recorded an increased life span in our times, human life can be described in six ages, namely: 1) the age of dependency, 2) childhood and education, 3) the age of independence, 4) maturity and responsibility, 5) the period of fulfillment, and finally 6) the age of dependence, a potential but not necessarily, an indicator for physical and mental decline. I must reiterate, aging is not synonymous with dependence nor disability. However, biologic aging can be characterized by an increase in the incidence of periodic chronic disorders. The frequency, rate of total disability, work-related disabilities and secondary work limitations are greater after age 55 than for any other age group. Stroke survivors, for example, suffer residual paralysis, although at least 80 percent of individuals with this physical injury usually receive and benefit from physical rehabilitation shortly after their stroke. According to the medical literature, the key message is that disability is neither present nor absent, but is rather a matter of degree. The elderly also suffer from feelings of being forgotten to feelings of self-neglect. Part of the reason why older people feel forgotten is due to 1) the stereotypes and pervasive attitudes expressed by policymakers who place more value on health that tends to support a youth orientation with less value on the issues that plague the aged, and 2) issues that surround the disability phenomenon that society often misunderstands. If aging and disability is continuously viewed in a negative way, both the elderly and those living with a physical disability may well be seen as a double jeopardy by current society. Further, to those who claim that little of worth happens at this late juncture of life have no discernable understanding of what it means to get old. Older people who become dependent and physically disabled are not to be dreaded. Instead they are to be welcomed with an opportunity for multiple roles as teachers, educators, volunteers, etc. The elderly often place a high priority on their continued independence and consider this to be a major factor that can determine their quality of life in their advancing years. It is the elderly and only the elderly who can choose what assistance is acceptable, and that gives them choice, which cannot be overemphasized. A final and a most important point! To those who may be assuming from the “philosophy” I have been suggesting that the term quality of life can only be attained when there is no disability: To the contrary! In my years of experience I have worked with many people with disabilities who have created their own quality of life within the framework of their conditions. They have led productive lives by continuing to be involved with the process of living, achieving and enjoying. Sheldon Ornstein Ed.D, RN Dr. Sheldon Ornstein is a registered professional nurse with a doctoral degree in nursing organization. He has specialized in the care of older adults and has published many articles on the subject. He has done post-graduate work in gerontology and has taught at several universities. In 2013, he was inducted into the Nursing Hall of Fame at Teachers College, Columbia University.
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