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Ageism

Diversity

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Aging and ageism...

The aged are a social minority and meet the requirements noted on the home page:
 
1. They experience unequal treatment in employment and may experience prejudice and discrimination.
 
2. They share physical characteristics and their liesure activities may differ from those in the social majority.
 
3. Membership in this group is involuntary.
 
4. Members may have a strong solidarity with other members of the same group.
 
5. In general, members of the group marry another member of the same group
 
 However, unlike all other social minority groups- we will all someday, be a member of this one.  We all grow old.

In 1820, the median (middle value) age of the population in the U.S. was 17 years old.  By 1900, the median had climbed to 23 years old and by the year 2000 it was 35 years old.  It has been projected that by the year 2030, the median age will be 42 years old!
 
The reason for longer life expectancies are complex and include things like medical and technological advances, declines in birth rate, and better knowledge of health related issues like hygiene, diet and exersize.
 
However, though our population of aged continues to increase, their status in America, has declined.
 
Ageism is defined as a "systematc stereotyping of and discrimination against people because they are old." (Robert Butler)

Thoughts are powerful.
If we as a society forget the value and wisdom of the elderly, we ignore a valuable resource and we communicate a rejection of an entire group of people beased on their age.

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This link will take you to the webpage for the American Association for Retired People.

Check out the website for The Gray Panthers, an advocacy organization that combats ageism. http://www.graypanthers.org/

This website provides basic information about age discrimination

Glossary

AAA - Area Agency on Aging

AARP - American Association of Retired Persons

Abuse - Abuse applies to injurious or improper treatment. Abuse can be of a physical, mental, or emotional nature.

Activities of Daily Living (ADL) - This is a term that refers to those things that people do every day to take care of themselves, such as bathing, eating, dressing, and using the bathroom

ADC - Adult Day Care

ADHC - Adult Day Health Care

ADI - Alzheimers Disease Initiative

ADL - Activities of Daily Living

ADNet - Adult Day Services Network

Aging and Disability Resource Center ADRC - Aging and Disability Resource Center The Aging and Disability Resource Center Grant Program, a cooperative effort of the Administration on Aging (AoA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), was developed to assist states in their efforts to create a single, coordinated system of information and access for all persons seeking long term support to minimize confusion, enhance individual choice, and support informed decision-making.

Adult Day Care - A daytime community-based program for functionally impaired adults that provides a variety of health, social, and related support services in a protective setting.

Adult Protective Services (APS) - Service which seeks to protect the rights of frail older adults by investigating cases of abuse, neglect, and exploitation as mandated by law.

Advance Directive - Legal documents that let others know your end-of-life wishes in relationship to your future medical treatment

Advance Directive - Legal documents that let others know your end-of-life wishes in relationship to your future medical treatment

AFCH - Adult Family Care Home

Aging in Place - Aging in Place is the concept that supports the aging process in a residential environment. The goal is to maintain independence with dignity in a safe and comfortable environment.

AHCA - Agency for Health Care Administration

ALF - Assisted Living Facility

ALW - Assisted Living for the Elderly Medicaid Waiver

ANDI - Aging Network Development Institute

ANE - Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation

Anxiety Disorders - Illnesses associated with feeling frightened or distressed for no apparent reason. Anxiety disorders include Panic Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, Social Phobias, and General Anxiety Disorder.

APS - Adult Protective Services

 

ARC - Aging Resource Center

Assisted Living - This is a term that refers to the housing arrangement for people who need assistance in taking care of themselves. Assisted living includes arrangements such as a continuing care retirement community, an assisted living community, a group home setting, or in one's own home utilizing in-home assistance with personal care, cooking, and/or assistance with housekeeping, etc.

Burnout - Physical, emotional, and/or mental exhaustion.

Caregiver - A caregiver is a person who is responsible for attending to the daily needs of another person. The care recipient may be a family member, life partner, or friend.

CARES - Comprehensive Assessment and Review of Long Term Care Services

CCDA - Community Care for Disabled Adults

CCE - Community Care for the Elderly

CCRC - Continuing Care Retirement Community

CHIC - Community Health Improvement Council

CIRTS - Client Information Registration & Tracking System

CIS - Client Information System

CM - Case Management

CMS - Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (formerly HCFA)

CNA - Certified Nursing Assistant

Congregate Meal Site - Sites (or centers) where seniors can go to eat lunch with one another

Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) - This is a large complex that provides a continuum of care, from apartments to assisted living units to skilled nursing care. CCRC’s typically require a long-term contract and can provide a range of services that meet the elder’s changing needs.

COW - Community Outreach and Wellness Program

CPSS - Community Partnership for Senior Services

CSC - Community Service Center

CSS - Community Service System

DCF - Department of Children & Family Services (formerly HRS)

DOEA - Department of Elder Affairs

EHEAP - Emergency Home Energy Assistance Program

F4A - Florida Association of Area Agencies on Aging

FAAN - Florida Association of Aging networks

FADCA - Florida Adult Day Care Association

 

FAHA - Florida Association of Homes for the Aged

FALA - Florida Assisted Living Association

FAMI - Florida Alliance for Mentally Ill, Inc.

FASC - Florida Association of Senior Citizens

FASP - Florida Association of Service Providers

FCOA - Florida Council on Aging

FFS - Fee for Service

FHCA - Florida Health Care Association

FLAG - Florida Local Action Group

Full-time Care - This is a term that refers to the housing arrangement for people who need full-time assistance in taking care of themselves. Full-time care arrangements include homes with 24-hour nursing services (often called skilled nursing facilities) or care in one's own home with a 24-hour caregiver.

GR - General Revenue

GRTS - Geriatric Residential Treatment Systems

H&W - Health and Wellness

HCBS - Home and Community Based Services

HCE - Home Care for the Elderly

HCFA - Health Care Finance Administration - Now CMS - Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

HCI - Healthy Community Initiative

HHS - U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

HIPAA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

Home Care Services - A variety of services, typically for a fee, that are brought into the home of the older adult and may include such assistants as: home health aides, in-home physical or occupational therapists, nutritionists, and/or nurses.

Home Delivered Meal - Meals delivered to the home; most often associated with a nonprofit agency, e.g., Meals on Wheels

Home Health Care - Includes a wide range of health-related services such as assistance with medications, wound care, intravenous (IV) therapy, and help with basic needs such as bathing, dressing, mobility, etc., which are delivered at a person's home.

Home Modification - Adaptation and/or renovation to the living environment intended to increase ease of use, safety, security and independence. Wheelchair ramps and grab bars are considered home modifications. There are some local, state, Federal and volunteer programs that provide special grants, loans and other assistance for home remodeling, repair and modification.

 

Hospice - A program model for delivering palliative care to individuals who are in the final stages of terminal illness

Information and Referral/Assistance (I&R) - Information & Referral Specialists are available to provide assistance and linkage to available services and resources.

Independent Living - This is a term that refers to the housing arrangement for people who need little or no assistance in taking care of themselves. Independent living includes all types of options such as apartments, town homes, and single-family homes. Independent Living residents includes those people who have remained in their homes as they have gotten older, as well as retirement communities, 55+ communities, "active" adult communities, etc.

Instrumental Activities of Daily Living - These activities are less related to personal needs and refers to those routine activities that people do every day such as paying bills, grocery shopping, cooking meals, cleaning the house, etc.

LTCDPP - Long Term Care Diversion Pilot Program

Managed Care - Method of organizing and financing health care services which emphasizes cost-effectiveness and coordination of care. Managed care organizations receive a fixed amount of money per client/member per month (called capitation), no matter how much care a member needs during that month.

Managed-Care Plan - As one option of choice under Medicare, Managed-Care plans combine health insurance and health care in one pre-determined, comprehensive network of health care providers.

Medicaid - A program of federal and state governments in which states provide health care for low-income individuals of any age who have little or no assets. The federal government establishes general rules, but each state administers its own Medicaid program.

Medicare - A program of the federal government that provides health care coverage for people over 65 and some people with disabilities.

 

Medigap - This is a popular term for private insurance that individuals can buy to supplement the gaps in Medicare coverage.

MW - Medicaid Waiver

N4A - National Association of Area Agencies on Aging

NCOA - National Council on Aging

OAA - Older Americans Act

Personal Care - Assistance with activities of daily living as well as with self-administration of medications and preparing special diets.

Primary Care Physician - A family practice doctor or internist who provides primary care to the individual and who can, when needed, refer the individual to a medical specialist.

PSA - Planning and Service Area

Respite - Respite is a short period of rest or relief. It might be an afternoon, a day, or even a week off from caregiving responsibilities. Respite may be delivered in thecaregiver’s home or at a facility. Examples include adult dayservices or out-of-home respite programs, some of which areoffered by nursing homes for a fee.

RFP - Request for Proposal

RSVP - Retired Senior Volunteer Program

Senior Center - A Senior Center is a gathering place that offers a variety of leisure activities for older adults. Some are open from early morning until late evening. Many are open on the weekends.

SHINE - Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders

Special Needs Individuals - Special needs Individuals are those with health or medical conditions who need assistance during a disaster.

SRA - Senior Resource Alliance

SSI - Supplemental Security Income

STCM - Short-Term Case Management

 

TTY/TDD - Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf

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