Elderly Revision S grade Questions Credit & General KU Questions

Some older people in the UK live in housing that does not meet their needs. 1. Explain in detail why some older people in the UK live in housing that does not meet their needs. (KU 4) They own their house & can’t afford, to maintain or repair it e.g. it is damp, slates are missing from the roof which leaks & affects their health badly. They can’t afford to adapt it e.g. replace steps at the entrance with a ramp or install a stair lift to get them safely upstairs to their bedroom if their mobility is not good or they have a heart condition which steep stairs aggravates. They can’t afford to install double glazing or central heating which would reduce heating bills & help keep them warm, reducing the risk of hypothermia. There is a shortage of sheltered housing with long waiting lists to they must remain in their own or rented house

Some elderly people can afford housing that is ideal for their needs. 2. Give 2 reasons why some elderly people can afford housing that is ideal for their needs. (KU 4) They may be rich, having had a well paid job for a number of years. This allowed them to have saved money or invested it in stocks & shares on the stock market. Some elderly people have a good occupational pension as well as the state one so they can afford good housing which suits their needs. Some due to their health needs have got into sheltered or very sheltered housing which gives them independence with support through the warden if needed. Some live in a council house which has been modernised with double glazing & central heating.

Some older people are very well-off while others live in poverty. 3. Explain in detail why some elderly people are wealthier than others. (KU 6) Some had well-paid jobs for forty years before they retired e.g. doctors, engineers while others had low paid ones only e.g. shop staff or park attendants. The well-paid jobs provide good pensions which allow them to have a good standard of living while in retirement, but the low paid jobs often don’t pay an occupational pension or only a very low one, which keeps them poor. Some may have been unemployed for a considerable part of their working life, so will not get the full state pension when they retire. Others may have been ill or injured or have a long standing complaint e.g. a bad back which prevents them from working, so they must rely on benefits to live which doesn’t allow them to save, so they have a low standard of living with few luxuries. Some only have the state pension for their income while others have help from family or they inherited money which eases their financial situation. Some may have had a spouse who died & been left to bring up a family on one wage only, so they have no savings when they are retired to pay for luxuries which would improve their standard of living.

The government is concerned that some older people have good pensions while others do not. 4. Explain in detail why the government wants older people to have a pension in addition to the state pension when they retire. (KU 8) There are growing numbers of older people, especially very old people aged 80+, while the numbers in the labour force who work & pay the taxes to provide the health care & pensions needed is falling, which means the state pension will be very low & only provide a poor standard of living. The government wants people to have their own private pension to improve their standard of living in retirement, especially as many are retired for 30 years, a long time to live in poverty. If they need residential or nursing home care, their private pension can pay for this.

Some older people require more health care than others in the population. 5. Explain in detail why elderly people need more health care than others in the population. (KU 8) Some people live longer & get multiple illnesses as they grow older e.g. the late Queen Mother was very healthy until she was ninety two when she needed a cataract operation to improve her eye sight & then needed two hip operations. Some parts in some people’s body needs replaced e.g. hip & knee joints. Some people’s heart beat needs to be regulated with a pacemaker Elderly people have less resistance to illness e.g. catch cold & flu easily which may develop into pneumonia, so they get flu jabs each winter to prevent this happening. They are more frail, so if they break a leg or arm, the bones won’t mend naturally, so they need an operation to pin the ends of the bone together, which means they must stay in hospital for about a week while this is done & they recover. Their eye sight & hearing are poorer so they have more accidents, which needs medical treatment to repair the damage they do when this happens. More elderly people suffer from dementia i.e. 1;20 does at age 60 but 1:5 does at age 80, so these people need constant care if their condition deteriorates. Some elderly lose their mobility & need help to move anywhere or need pushed in a wheelchair

Residential care best meets the needs of some elderly people. 6. Explain in detail why residential care best meets the needs of some elderly people. Some people need 24/7 care e.g. dementia sufferers & live alone or have no family living near so they need residential care to ensure their safety. When they get ill, someone is there to care for them or call the doctor. Some need special meals e.g. diabetics but they can’t be bothered making appropriate meals or eating regularly which makes their condition worse. In residential care, meals are provided & these cater for special dietary needs, which improves their health. If elderly people living alone need more care, this is provided in a residential care home. They won’t be lonely or depressed if they stay in residential care, since there are other residents to talk to & social activities organised in the common room area which they can take part in. They have their own room with en suite facilities so they have their privacy too. It may have specialised equipment e.g. bath hoists or walk-in baths, which the elderly person needs to get into a bath easily.

The needs of some elderly people can be met by their family. 7. Describe 2 ways in which the needs of some elderly people can be met by their family. (KU 4) Elderly people need money to pay their heating bills or buy extra luxuries which their state pension doesn’t allow, but their family can provide money to pay for these. They can finance holidays or other treats e.g. theatre visits too. They need company which the family can provide by visiting them so they don’t feel lonely & depressed, especially if they live alone. They need social outings or activities which their family can provide for them or invite them to so they feel wanted or needed. Elderly people need to take their medication regularly & eat decent meals at certain times, especially if they are on medication too, so the family can check that this is happening, if they live nearby. Some elderly people are wealthier than others. 8. Give 2 reasons why some elderly people are wealthier than others (KU 4) Refer to Q. 3 since this is a General form the same question.