Lessons on Aging from Three Nations: The Art of Caring for Older Adults

by Sara Carmel, Carol A. Morse, Fernando M. Torres-Gil, Hendricks Hendricks

Overview

The global phenomenon of the aging of societies during a period of outstanding scientific, economic, and technological advancements is a blessing for humanity. These fundamental changes, however, create new needs and problems in all areas of life, often difficult to address. In some countries, the trend is towards compression of the period of age-related morbidity - fewer years of living with disabilities - but the absolute numbers of elderly people living with disabilities are increasing worldwide. This book highlights a series of global threats, problems and challenges in the areas of care and caregiving, through the prism of three multicultural nations: the United States, Israel and Australia. The contributors to this book, experts in their fields, focus on the art of caregiving at the national level, including the interface between family and state responsibilities, policies and practices in the provision of services, and the demands for education and training, as well as the problems and difficulties faced by family caregivers. This is the second of two edited volumes on aging and caregiving. The first, ""Lessons on Aging from Three Nations - Volume I: The Art of Aging Well"", examines positive aspects of and successful adaptations to aging. This book will be of interest to students of gerontology and geriatrics; those working in nongovernmental organizations - private, for-profit and non-profit agencies, including voluntary charitable and religious groups, those working in national regional and local governments, and all general readers intrigued with the aging of societies and longevity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781351843270
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	10/26/2018
Series:	Society and Aging Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	220
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Sara Carmel Ph.D is Professor at Center for Multidisciplinary Researcg in Aging and Department of Sociology of Health, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

Table of Contents

Section 1: The Art of Caregiving: Policies and Services

Introduction, Carol A. Morse

1. The Interface Between Family Responsibility and State Responsibility in Caring for the Elderly in Israel, Esther Iecovich

2. Consumer-Directed Services at Home for Older People in the United States, A. E. Benjamin

3. Residential Care: Informed Choices, Cheryl Tilse, Jill Wilson, And Deborah Setterlund

4. New Demands on Education and Training for the Care of Old People: The Case of Israel, David Galinsky

Section 2: The Art of Family Care

Introduction, Joann Damron-Rodriguez

5. In Care and on Call: The Endangered System of Australian Family-Based Caregiving, Carol A. Morse And Rosalind Lau

6. The Challenges and Issues Confronting Family Caregivers to Elderly Cancer Patients, Victoria H. Raveis

7. Letting Go and Holding On: Support for the Carer and Dementia Care in the Final Stages, Suzanne Aberdeen

Section 3: The Art of Letting Go

Introduction, Sara Carmel

8. Bioethics and End-Of-Life Issues, Gail Tulloch

9. End-Of-Life Care in Israel, Sara Carmel

10. The Dying Patient: Israeli Attitudes and Proposals, Avraham Steinberg

11. Advance Directives, Jiska Cohen-Mansfield

12. Resources, Autonomy, and Lack of Focus on the Common Good: End-Of-Life Decision Making For Older Patients in the United States, Neil S. Wenger and James W. Davis

13. Palliative Care for the Aged Community: An Australian Perspective, Linda J. Kristjanson, Jayne Walton, and Christine Toye

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: David O. Staats, MD (University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center)
Description: This is the second volume of a multiauthored book on themes of social gerontology in three countries — the U.S., Israel, and Australia.
Purpose: The purpose is to review current themes of social gerontology to demonstrate the global nature of aging.
Audience: The audience is mostly social gerontologists and policy makers. The authors are all experts in the field.
Features: The first of the book's three sections discusses the art of caring, with thoughtful essays on the balance between the family's role and society's role in caring for older persons, and the choices created by consumer-driven demand for services. The second section is on the art of family care with essays on cancer care, late-stage dementia care, and care of special populations. The third section on end-of-life care includes essays on cultural issues around end-of-life care, advance directives, and palliative care.
Assessment: This book continues the work of the first volume. The essays are well matched and evenly written by experts in the field. That there are common threads of needing to deal with minority populations in the nation and cultural issues with family caregiving and that these impact the approach to end-of-life care gives substance and truth to this book. It is well edited and a pleasure to read.

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