Ontario, unfortunately, is moving in the wrong direction.
Ontario, Law Commission highlights ageism in justice system
The Law Commission of Ontario just released its latest report: A Framework for the Law as it Affects Older Adults. It is designed to highlight and remedy the many ways provincial laws, regulations and policies discriminate on the basis of age, deprive seniors of rights guaranteed in the Constitution and shut them out of policy debates that directly affect their lives.The medical horror stories abound. While we understand that pediatrics is a specialized field, we do not have the same understanding of geriatrics or palliative care.
And still the media, and others, still call our seniors in hospitals the pejorative term 'bed blockers.' The politically correct term is Alternative Level of Care (ALC) patients. We wouldn't send a pediatric patient home without care. Nor should we send a senior home in the same situation. Ontario healthcare isn't 'broken', but it is badly handled by many levels of Primary Care from hospitals, to physicians, nurses, CCAC Case Managers, and the like. Too few geriatric specialists, methinks.
An example, my friend, Kay in LTC, went to the hospital where the Head Nurse was yelling at her for not taking solid foods. Her doctor had told her (verbally only) not to take any, as she now has a feeding tube. PSW staff, similarly, refused to bring her Boost on demand, as they've been told it spoils people's appetites.
Ageism Presents Dilemmas For Policymakers Worldwide
Dominic Abrahms, PhD, and Hannah J. Swift research showed of 28 countries assessed in the 2008-2009 European Social Survey:- 24 % of respondents reported prejudice because of gender
- 16 % because of their race or ethnicity.
- 34 % reported having experienced age prejudice in the last year
- 37 % said they had felt a lack of respect because of their age
- 28 % said they had been treated badly because of their age.
The Gerontological Society of America
n.p. (2012, September 15). "Ageism Presents Dilemmas For Policymakers Worldwide." Medical News Today. Retrieved from Medical News Today.
2 comments:
Well said. Another area which is ignored is facilities which are geared to the seniors ability to navigate in many places...steps, counters, doors, print, light...
A great post, and I applaud you.
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