Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper

Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Geriatric Nursing Geriatric nursing is a heartfelt profession which allows you to connect with the patients. Gerontology is an nurse who works in the field of geriatrics that focuses on caring for older adults. This career is highly recommended because older people are most likely to require health services. Most hospitals have patients at the age over 65, and only 1% of the nurses are certified in geriatrics. Geriatric nurses are educated to understand and treat physical and mental health needs of older adults. They help and assist with the mental and physical changes occurring in their time. Geriatric nurses help older adults for them to be independent and active as long as possible. Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Permalink: https://nursingpaperessays.com/ nursing-gerontology-essay-paper / ? Geriatric Nursing Geriatric nursing is a heartfelt profession which allows you to connect with the patients. Gerontology is an nurse who works in the field of geriatrics that focuses on caring for older adults. This career is highly recommended because older people are most likely to require health services. Most hospitals have patients at the age over 65, and only 1% of the nurses are certified in geriatrics. Geriatric nurses are educated to understand and treat physical and mental health needs of older adults. They help and assist with the mental and physical changes occurring in their time. Geriatric nurses help older adults for them to be independent and active as long as possible. Geriatric nurses are to provide disease prevention, health promotion, and positive aging. The American Journal of Nursing, the American Nurses Association, and John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for geriatric nursing contributed to the development of gerontological nursing (Pierre, “Gerontological Nursing”). In 2001, the John A. Hartford Foundation awarded the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) a $3.99 million grant to launch a new initiative entitled “Enhancing Geriatric Nursing Education in Undergraduate Advanced Practice Nursing Programs 1. End of Life Issues and the Elderly (2) “Identify and discuss the role of the nurse in providing family centred care to an elderly client who is palliative and living at home with his/her spouse or another family member”.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Palliative care is an approach to provide a coordinated medical, nursing, and allied health service to address the patient’s physical, social emotional and spiritual needs for people with progressive incurable illness. Palliative care seeks to deliver allied health service within the environment of person’s choice to improve quality of life for both an ill person and the family or friends. In the United States, Europe and other part of the world, number of people reaching the advanced age and having the need of specialities for the management of pain control continues to increase. (Royal College of Nursing, 2004). Meanwhile, a nurse plays vital roles in providing family centred care to an elderly palliative client living at home with his or her spouse or family member. Nurses’ roles to an elderly palliative client are as follows: Relief client from physical symptoms Providing quality of life-care for an elderly patient Family support Assisting the client to achieve good death or dying well Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper -is the accumulation of changes in a person over time. Ageing in humans refers to a multidimensional process of physical, psychological, and social change. Some dimensions of ageing grow and expand over time, while others decline. Reaction time, for example, may slow with age, while knowledge of world events and wisdom may expand. Research shows that even late in life, potential exists for physical, mental, and social growth and development. Ageing is an important part of all human societies reflecting the biological changes that occur, but also reflecting cultural and societal conventions. Roughly 100,000 people worldwide die each day of age-related causes. Age is measured chronologically, and a person’s birthday is often an important event. However the term “ageing” is somewhat ambiguous. Distinctions may be made between “universal ageing” (age changes that all people share) and “probabilistic ageing” (age changes that may happen to some, but not all people as they grow older including diseases such as type two diabetes). Chronological ageing may also be distinguished from “social ageing” (cultural age-expectations of how people should act as they grow older) and “biological ageing” (an organism’s physical state as it ages). There is also a distinction between “proximal ageing” (age-based effects that come about because of factors in the recent past) and “distal ageing” (age-based differences that can be traced back to a cause early in person’s life, such as childhood poliomyelitis). Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Nurses who work in the field of geriatrics, also known as gerontology, focus on caring for older adults. This is a high-demand practice area, because older people are more likely to require health services. Half of all hospital admissions are for patients over age 65, but only 1% of nurses are certified in geriatrics (ExploreHealthCareers.org, 2013). Geriatric nurses are educated to understand and treat the often complex physical and mental health needs of older people. Nurses try to help their patients protect their health and cope with changes in their mental and physical abilities, so older people can stay independent and active as long as possible. Many older people have health conditions that do not require hospitalization, but must be treated with medication, changes in diet, use of special equipment, daily exercises or other adaptations. The nurses often function as a case manager, linking families with community resources to help them care for elderly members. (ExploreHealthCareers.org, 2013.) Geriatric nursing is a fast-growing career, because Americans are living longer. The post-WWII “Baby Boomer” generation is just now hitting retirement age. According to the U.S. Census, by 2050 more than 20% of Americans – 88 million people –– will be over age 65. (Cherry, 2011) Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Have you ever wondered, what will happen to you when you become older? Who is going to take care of you? Who will help you when you get sick? As chronic illnesses, memory loss, hearing loss, and other complications set in with age, you are worried who will take care of you? All of above are worries that elderly people face on a daily bases as they get older in the United States of America, today. Well, with the high increase of elderly visit in the United States, geriatric health care is a booming job and becoming a high demand job. So, no more worrying elderly! The new geriatric health care field is here and geriatric (LTC) nurses can take care of you today. The geriatric health care environment extends from home …show more content… Your college choice should be based off your desired degree, modality, and length of time, cost, and location. Just remember to choose the college that best fits you and meets your selected degree, because without the proper education you will not understand medical terminology such as: LPN, RN, or even BSN; which basically just stands for licensed practical nurse (LPN), registered nurse (RN), and Bachelor of Science Nurse, because a “nurse” is just never a nurse (Geriatric Nurses). (2) Focus on geriatric- related training while in school.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Katy Katz research states, prospective college student should “pay special attention to classes with training for care of older adults and take as many as possible and when it comes time to schedule your internships at off-campus clinical sites, try to work in a program where you will get extra time working with geriatric patients.” Focus on the materials from your desired degree, the more experience you have, the better it will look once you graduate and trying to find a job with different facilities (Katz). The health of older citizens will become a critical national policy issue during this century. As a country, we Americans may have to rethink fundamental cultural values about the meaning of providing health care to older adults with chronic conditions. Simply treating disease is no longer sufficient. The growing number of older adults, and the families who care for them, will need emotional, educational, and financial resources that are not currently available. Planning to meet this challenge is important because an elderly population explosion is coming, beginning in 2010.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper By 2030, 70 million U.S. citizens will be over age 65, and 8.5 million Americans will be over age 85 (National Center for Health Statistics, 1999). The “oldest old” Americans—those aged 85 years or more—are the fastest growing group in the US. This trend is important to those planning health care needs for the future because the oldest old individuals are most likely to be disabled, use multiple medications, or need consistent caregiving. Many older adults will be from ethnically diverse cultures. For example, Hispanic elders, now 5.6% of the elderly population, will increase to 16.4% of the elderly population during the next 50 years. In some states such as California, where 25% of the population is foreign born, the proportion of older Americans from diverse cultures will be even higher (National Center for Health Statistics, 2002).Nursing Gerontology Essay PaperThis growing elderly population will have an increasing need for health care and related services, an effect that will ripple through society as we grapple with the implications of caring for our elders. The increased proportion of older adults in the population need not present major problems if we can provide appropriate resources for adequate quality of life for older adults, such as specialized health care that includes attention to the management of chronic illness, support for family caregivers, and the financial constraints of older adults. Even today, when the number of older adults is smaller, critical health and quality of life issues remain unresolved, issues that may grow worse as the population of older adults increases.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of major issues that affect whether the growing number of older adults can expect to enjoy a healthy old age. Four critical areas will be discussed: providing resources to individuals to help manage chronic medical conditions, assuring a sufficient number of primary health care providers educated in geriatrics and gerontology, removing financial barriers to accessing health care and medications, and changing the cultural value system that emphasizes disease treatment over providing emotional, educational, and support resources. Reassessing current public policies that influence our ability to provide for the health and well-being of older citizens will influence our success in meeting these health challenges. The policy implications of these four major health issues will be briefly discussed in this article and addressed in more detail in the other articles in this topic of the journal, each of which focuses on a particular challenge related to health care and aging. Because of their fragile health, elderly individuals often need special care, particularly since a minor health related issue can sometimes spin out of control quickly in the elderly.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Working as a geriatric nurse is often very gratifying and rewarding personally. However, it takes a special type of person to work in this field, and the work can also be frustrating or disheartening at times as well. If you are looking to become a geriatric nurse, you must keep in mind that the aging process affects everyone differently. While some elderly patients are somewhat content or even happy-go-lucky, others may be sad, scared, or even angry that their health is failing. Before becoming a geriatric nurse, you should evaluate your personality. Geriatric nurses should be generally upbeat and cheerful people. They should also be patient, understanding, empathetic, and compassionate, with a true desire to work with aging patients. If you choose this career, you should also be able to handle and bounce back from depressing events, such as the death of a patient.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Geriatrics continues to draw insufficient numbers of medical students today. Currently, little is known regarding how education can motivate students to choose geriatrics. The authors’ aim was to examine geriatrics from the students’ perspective to identify elements that can be useful in education and improving attitudes toward, interest in, and knowledge about geriatrics. The authors analyzed narrative reflection essays of 36 students and clarified the themes from the essays during focus group sessions. Four overarching themes that influenced students’ perspective on geriatrics were identified: professional identity, perception of geriatrics, geriatric-specific problems, and learning environment. Students have an inaccurate image of clinical practice and the medical professional identity, which has a negative impact on their attitude toward, interest in, and knowledge of geriatrics. Furthermore, this study yielded the important role of the hidden curriculum on professional identity, the novelty of geriatric-specific problems to students, and the importance of educational approach and good role models.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Given our aging population, most doctors will likely serve the health care needs of patients who are frail and older at some point, and will, therefore, need a basic set of geriatric assessment and care competencies. However, geriatrics has traditionally been an unpopular field, despite the high job satisfaction reported among geriatricians (Haley & Zelinski, 2007 Haley, W. E. , & Zelinski, E. ( 2007 ). Progress and challenges in graduate education in gerontology: The U.S. experience . Gerontology & Geriatrics Education , 27(3), 11 – 26 . doi: 10.1300/J021v27n03_02 [Taylor & Francis Online] , , [Google Scholar] ; Higashi, Tillack, Steinman, Harper, & Johnston, 2012 Higashi, R. T. , Tillack, A. A. , Steinman, M. , Harper, M. , & Johnston, C. B. ( 2012 ). Elder care as “frustrating” and “boring”: Understanding the persistence of negative attitudes toward older patients among physicians-in-training . Journal of Aging Studies , 26(4), 476 – 483 . doi: 10.1016/j.jaging.2012.06.007 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Shah, Aung, Chan, & Wolf-Klein, 2006 Shah, U. , Aung, M. , Chan, S. , & Wolf-Klein, G. P. ( 2006 ). Do geriatricians stay in geriatrics? Gerontology & Geriatrics Education , 27(1), 57 – 65 . doi: 10.1300/J021v27n01_04 [Taylor & Francis Online] , , [Google Scholar] ). Moreover, doctors often feel overwhelmed by the complexity of problems presented by geriatric patients (Nilsson, Lindkvist, Rasmussen, & Edvardsson, 2012 Nilsson, A. , Lindkvist, M. , Rasmussen, B. H. , & Edvardsson, D. ( 2012 ). Staff attitudes towards older patients with cognitive impairment: Need for improvements in acute care . Journal of Nursing Management , 20(5), 640 – 647 . doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2834.2012.01406.x [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ), and many medical students lack a positive attitude toward older patients (Drickamer, Levy, Irwin, & Rohrbaugh, 2006 Drickamer, M. A. , Levy, B. , Irwin, K. S. , & Rohrbaugh, R. M. ( 2006 ). Perceived needs for geriatric education by medical students, internal medicine residents and faculty . Journal of General Internal Medicine , 21(12), 1230 – 1234 . doi: 10.1111/j.1525-1497.2006.00585.x [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Haley & Zelinski, 2007 Haley, W. E. , & Zelinski, E. ( 2007 ). Progress and challenges in graduate education in gerontology: The U.S. experience . Gerontology & Geriatrics Education , 27(3), 11 – 26 . doi: 10.1300/J021v27n03_02 [Taylor & Francis Online] , , [Google Scholar] ; Higashi et al., 2012 Higashi, R. T. , Tillack, A. A. , Steinman, M. , Harper, M. , & Johnston, C. B. ( 2012 ). Elder care as “frustrating” and “boring”: Understanding the persistence of negative attitudes toward older patients among physicians-in-training . Journal of Aging Studies , 26(4), 476 – 483 . doi: 10.1016/j.jaging.2012.06.007 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Lun, 2011 Lun, M. W. A. ( 2011 ). Student knowledge and attitudes toward older people and their impact on pursuing aging careers . Educational Gerontology , 37(1), 1 – 11 . doi: 10.1080/03601270903534770 [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). At the same time and possibly related to this, the number of medical students enrolling in geriatrics is insufficient, especially considering the growing demands of our aging society.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Recently, the Association of American Medical Colleges established minimum geriatric competencies for medical students (Leipzig et al., 2009 Leipzig, R. M. , Granville, L. , Simpson, D. , Anderson, M. B. , Sauvigne, K. , & Soriano, R. P. ( 2009 ). Keeping granny safe on July 1: A consensus on minimum geriatrics competencies for graduating medical students . Academic Medicine , 84(5), 604 – 610 . [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). Every graduating physician must meet these minimum geriatric competencies. However, despite this recent effort to address society’s pressing demand for doctors with basic geriatric assessment competencies and to improve attitudes among doctors toward older patients, only a few medical schools have a mandatory clerkship in geriatrics, or some other geriatric-specific training program (Atkinson et al., 2013 Atkinson, H. H. , Lambros, A. , Davis, B. R. , Lawlor, J. S. , Lovato, J. , Sink, K. M. , & Williamson, J. D. ( 2013 ). Teaching medical student geriatrics competencies in 1 week: An efficient model to teach and document selected competencies using clinical and community resources . Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 61(7), 1182 – 1187 . doi: 10.1111/jgs.12314 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Tullo, Spencer, & Allan, 2010 Tullo, E. S. , Spencer, J. , & Allan, L. ( 2010 ). Systematic review: Helping the young to understand the old. Teaching interventions in geriatrics to improve the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of undergraduate medical students . Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 58(10), 1987 – 1993 . doi: 10.1111/j.1532-Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper 5415.2010.03072.x [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). Currently, little is known about how education can positively influence attitude toward older persons and about how young doctors take more interest in the field of geriatrics and care for older persons (Campbell, Durso, Brandt, Finucane, & Abadir, 2013 Campbell, J. Y. , Durso, S. C. , Brandt, L. E. , Finucane, T. E. , & Abadir, P. M. ( 2013 ). The unknown profession: A geriatrician . Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 61(3), 447 – 449 . doi: 10.1111/jgs.12115 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Nanda et al., 2013 Nanda, A. , Farrell, T. W. , Shield, R. R. , Tomas, M. , Campbell, S. E. , & Wetle, T. ( 2013 ). Medical students’ recognition and application of geriatrics principles in a new curriculum . Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 61(3), 434 – 439 . doi: 10.1111/jgs.12139 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). To achieve such improvements, insight is needed into educational methods that will appeal to students and that will improve their attitudes toward and interest in as well as knowledge about geriatrics and care for older persons. The process of shaping knowledge, values, and behaviours takes place at different levels throughout the course of a student’s education: at the formal education level; course catalogs, class syllabi, lectures, notes and handouts, and at the informal level of the so called hidden curriculum; learning that occurs by means of informal interactions among students, faculty, and others and/or learning that occurs through organizational, structural, and cultural influences intrinsic to training institutions. It is through this hidden curriculum that students are socialized to clinical practice and where their professional identity is shaped (Gaufberg, Batalden, Sands, & Bell, 2010 Gaufberg, E. H. , Batalden, M. , Sands, R. , & Bell, S. K. ( 2010 ). The hidden curriculum: What can we learn from third-year medical student narrative reflections? Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges , 85(11), 1709 – 1716 . Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper doi: 10.1097/ACM.0b013e3181f57899 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Hafferty, 1998 Hafferty, F. W. ( 1998 ). Beyond curriculum reform: Confronting medicine’s hidden curriculum . Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges , 73(4), 403 – 407 . doi: 10.1097/00001888-199804000-00013 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; White, Kumagai, Ross, & Fantone, 2009 White, C. B. , Kumagai, A. K. , Ross, P. T. , & Fantone, J. C. ( 2009 ). A qualitative exploration of how the conflict between the formal and informal curriculum influences student values and behaviors . Academic Medicine , 84(5), 597 – 603 . doi: 10.1097/ACM.0b013e31819fba36 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). Our discussion here examines how medical students’ attitudes toward and interest in geriatrics and care for older persons are shaped by various factors, including the formal and hidden curriculum. Student narrative reflection essays provide a rich source of information about the impact of the formal and hidden curriculum and are a potential substrate for curricular enhancement (Fischer et al., 2008 Fischer, M. A. , Harrell, H. E. , Haley, H. L. , Cifu, A. S. , Alper, E. , Johnson, K. M. , & Hatem, D. ( 2008 ). Between two worlds: A multi-institutional qualitative analysis of students’ reflections on joining the medical profession . Journal of General Internal Medicine , 23(7), 958 – 963 . doi: 10.1007/s11606-008-0508-1 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ; Karnieli-Miller, Vu, Holtman, Clyman, & Inui, 2010 Karnieli-Miller, O. , Vu, T. R. , Holtman, M. C. , Clyman, S. G. , & Inui, T. S. ( 2010 ). Medical students’ professionalism narratives: A window on the informal and hidden curriculum . Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges , 85(1), 124 – 133 . doi: 10.1097/ACM.0b013e3181c42896 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). We hypothesized that student narrative reflection essays would help identify students’ preconceptions and image of geriatrics and care for older persons and geriatrics education. To this end, we asked 3rd-year medical students, who had taken a 4-week geriatric course, to write a narrative reflection essay about their experiences in the course and their thoughts on geriatrics and care for older persons before and after the course. The course in question was new and combined traditional teaching methods with a recently developed medical educational game called GeriatriX (van De Pol, Lagro, Fluit, Lagro-Janssen, & Olde Rikkert, 2014 van De Pol, M. H. , Lagro, J. , Fluit, L. R. , Lagro-Janssen, T. L. , & Olde Rikkert, M. G. ( 2014 ). Teaching geriatrics using an innovative, individual-centered educational game: Students and educators win. A proof-of-concept study . Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 62(10), 1943 – 1949 . doi: 10.1111/jgs.13024 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , , [Google Scholar] ). After analyzing the essays, we held focus group interviews to elaborate and clarify the elements that emerged from the essays. This study specifically seeks to explore the preconceptions and image of delivering medical care for persons who are frail and older from the students’ perspective to identify elements that can be useful in education in improving attitudes toward, interest in and knowledge about geriatrics. We argue that when it is clear which elements are responsible for improving attitudes toward, interest in, and knowledge about geriatrics, they can be used to adjust medical curricula to deliver geriatric competent young doctors.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Negative stereotypes of older age and nursing homes persist in our society. Common misconceptions include the view that older adults are lonely, bored, or dissatisfied with life and that nursing homes are lifeless institutions (Gugliucci & Weiner, 2012). Suffice it to say that the later years of one’s life may be challenging, and if one moves to a nursing home, residing there may not be the “home” of choice. However, as complex as nursing home environments may be, social and developmental opportunities abound, and operations are under constant scrutiny to create culture change. For this review each book (leg) offers components of life lived in nursing homes. The Learning by Living project is but one integration point. In short, Beaulieu’s book provides the staff perspective and the details of what staff needs to be aware of in providing social work care in the nursing home environment; Gaffney’s book represents one person’s experience of nursing home living, in a variety of homes for the remainder of her life; and Doll’s book offers specific insights into sexuality, a real issue that could enhance nursing home residents’ quality of life. My credentials for this essay include being a gerontologist, a member of a nursing home board of trustees, the principal investigator for the Learning by Living project, sharing countless experiences with students, and, maybe most importantly, having cared for a parent in a nursing home. I suggest each leg of this review represents important issues that need to be considered if we are to create a nursing home environment in which we undo the negative stereotypes of both older age and nursing homes.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Long-term care (LTC) and nursing home care are two terms that erroneously get used interchangeably. LTC is the umbrella term, describing the provision of care for people who have disabilities or chronic care needs, including dementia, over a long period of time. However, those needing LTC may or may not require 24-hr professional care or need to reside in a nursing home. The services may be provided in a variety of settings, such as the person’s home, in the community, in assisted living facilities, or in nursing homes. Nursing home care is one form of LTC and usually is based on a medical model. It is the provision of 24-hr care with licensed professional nurses in a residential setting. Residents tend to have physical, cognitive, or mental health issues that keep them from performing at least one (usually more) of the activities of daily living (ADLs) (i.e., bathing, dressing, eating, walking, toileting, and grooming). Nursing home professional staff includes medical directors, nurses, geriatric social workers, activities directors, and registered dieticians, and sometimes physical, occupational and speech therapists. Certified nursing assistants assist with frontline resident care. It is important to note that short-term or rehabilitative care, even if provided in a nursing home, is not LTC. Instead the person may need assistance and/or rehabilitation after surgery, an illness, or an injury. This care can be provided in the person’s home, in a rehabilitation hospital, or in a skilled or rehabilitation unit in a nursing home. When a person is admitted to a nursing home for LTC, she/he becomes a resident of the nursing home. It is preferable not to refer to the person in this situation as a patient. However, if a person is admitted into a nursing home for a short-term stay, skilled care, or rehabilitation, then the person is considered a patient.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper The University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine Learning by Living Project (referred to as Learning by Living in this review) was piloted in 2006. It was designed and implemented as an experiential medical education learning model by the Director of Geriatrics Education and Research within the Medical School’s Department of Geriatric Medicine. Since its inception, medical and other health professions students have been “admitted” into nursing homes to live the life of an elder nursing home resident for approximately 2 weeks—(24hr a day/7 days a week)—complete with a medical diagnosis and “standard” procedures of care. Thus far, 28 medical students, two social work students, one gerontology student, and one student of architecture have participated in the Learning by Living project in 14 nursing homes in four states.Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper The Learning by Living Project utilizes qualitative ethnographic and autobiographic research designs, whereby a unique environment or “culture” (nursing home) is observed and life experiences of the medical student are reported by him/her while living within the environment. Medical students “admitted” into the nursing home as a resident are asked to answer these questions: What is it like for me to live in a nursing home ; What does it mean to me to be a nursing home resident? The Learning by Living ethnographic immersion has three stages: (a) Pre-fieldwork—getting ready for the experience; (b) Fieldwork—living in the environment with a diagnosis, standard procedures of care including a “medication” regimen, toileting, bathing, transferring with assistance, eating pureed foods, and engaging in activities and relationship building; and (c) Post-fieldwork—reflection on what occurred during fieldwork (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994, 2005).Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper In 2005, 12% of students in California social work programs were taking courses on aging compared with a national report of 7% by the Council on Social Work Education and an earlier 1993 national survey of 3%. Still, the number of social work students training in gerontology remains less than the needed numbers (Damron-Rodriguez, Ranney, Goodman, Min, & Takahashi et al., 2013, p. 235). Most students in social work programs say that they plan to work with children, but given the jobs available, many of these students end up working with older adults. It is inevitable in our society. Beaulieu’s book, originally published in 2002, clearly articulates what on-the-ground nursing home social work practice involves. According to Beaulieu, social workers who work in nursing homes are faced with two key challenges (a) the health care system bias toward community care rather than nursing home/institutional care; and (b) the press of national regulations in shaping nursing home care. This book is divided into six parts: Social Work in Nursing Facilities; The Interdisciplinary Team; Nursing Facilities and Governing Oversights; Diagnosis, Treatment, and Care Issues; Ethics; and Community Liaisons. The appendix provides examples of standardized forms that are part of the social worker’s responsibility, and the book includes online resources and a glossary of terms and abbreviations. These resources are useful as it is rare to be exposed to this type of information or detail during one’s educational training. In the Basic Orientation chapter (Chapter 2), Beaulieu presents the landscape of responsibilities for social workers in the nursing home setting, which includes counseling, resource allocations, advocacy, planning and treatment, mediation, and of course psychosocial factors. The importance of these supportive roles is underscored by the experiences of the Learning by Living students, who reported that social workers often aided them in their adjustment to nursing home living Nursing Gerontology Essay Paper Between 1900 and 2000, life expectancy in the United States increased from 51 to 80 years for women and from 48 to 74 years from men (Population Reference Bureau, 2002). As Americans have increased their years of life, the prevalence of chronic conditions associated with age has also increased. It is estimated that by 2040, almost 160 million people in the US, most of them elderly, will be living with chronic conditions (National Academy on an Aging Society, 1999). Chronic cond