Caring for the Elderly: Who Dislikes It Least?

Abstract

"Reluctant" best describes health professionals' attitudes toward caring for the elderly. This article examines work plans of student nurses and work practices of registered nurses to ascertain who actually cares for the aged. Investigation of geriatric nurses reveals that few plan to or do work with the elderly. Salaries are low, and opportunities for career advancement are limited, especially for those working in nursing homes. Older and minority nurses are most likely to provide geriatric care. Based on these findings, manpower and educational policy changes are recommended.

Undergraduate Interest in Aging: Is It Affected by Contact With Older Adults?

“…However, much of the literature on this topic has focused on barriers to interest in aging, such as negative attitudes toward older people and a reluctance to work with the elderly (Beullens, Marcoen, Jaspaert & Pelemans, 1997;Feldbaum & Feldbaum, 1981;Kayser & Minnigerode, 1975). Distinct from attitudes, which are feelings or emotions toward older people, interest in aging has been de ned as the intention to learn about aging, pursue a career in aging gerontology (Damron-Rodriguez et al, 1998).…”

“…Some studies report that minorities are more likely to be interested in aging (Feldbaum & Feldbaum, 1981;Litwin, 1994), while others report the opposite (Doka & SmithFraser, 1987). Moreover, ndings on ethnicity have been mixed with Downloaded by [Cornell University Library] at 18:11 18 November 2014 regard to which ethnic groups are interested in aging (Doka & SmithFraser, 1987;Feldbaum & Feldbaum, 1981, Litwin, 1994).…”

Hvem vil arbeide med eldre?

“…I gjennomgangen av litteratur angående hvor stor andel av sykepleiestudentene som kan tenke seg å arbeide med eldre, finner en gjennomgående at dette er et område få ønsker (5, 6,7,8,9). Andelen i disse studiene varierer fra ca.…”

“…Positive private erfaringer med eldre og positiv arbeidserfaring med eldre før påbegynt utdanning, synes å øke sannsynligheten for å velge arbeid med eldre (24,6,10). Disse sammenhengene er lite studert i Norge og norden.…”

A Pilot Study of a Creative Bonding Intervention to Promote Nursing Students' Attitudes towards Taking Care of Older People

“…Minorities and older health professional students and workers have been cited as groups that favored work with older people [4]. Researchers have more recently reported an inverse relationship between age of the caregiver and better attitudes among Hispanic social work students [6].…”