The National Institute on Aging generally describes older adults as people age 65 and older; however, definitions of older adulthood vary. Older people (age groups) refer to a subset of society comprised of older people who can act as older people to make decisions, perform ceremonial functions and be consulted for their long experience in the community. In several cultures, they play important roles depending on their age and are recognized for their wisdom and contributions. At what age is a person considered elderly? According to the World Health Organization, aging is commonly measured by chronological age. As a convention, a person over the age of 65 is often referred to as an elderly person.
This is also the age when most people retire and start receiving a pension. However, the age of older people is not uniform and can be affected by genetics, lifestyle and general health. Older age is an age descriptor used to refer to older adults. 2 The term is generally used for people over 65, although definitions may vary.
2 The term is used both in research and in society in general. Understanding older people's perspectives on health-promoting personal care is critical for health professionals, who can encourage self-care behaviors, prevent self-care deficits, and plan educational interventions aimed at keeping older people in their homes for as long as possible. Studies on elder abuse and diversity, such as the one conducted by Moon (199) with Korean older adults, or Brown (199) with indigenous American elders, suggest that older adults from diverse cultures view elder abuse differently, and these diverse perspectives should be heard and considered in policy promotion initiatives. In addition, the elderly are the main consumers of prescription drugs and are responsible for the majority of deaths (Jahnigen, D.
With the development of medical technology and the improvement of healthy lifestyles, the average lifespan of human beings is increasing; therefore, the number of elderly people is also increasing. In government settings, it is usually associated with an age at which pensions or medical benefits for older people are available. Therefore, the results may be difficult to apply to all elderly patients in the country, due to the characteristics of the region, the hospital scale and the period of study. It contributes to discrimination in the workplace and in the health system and, in its most insidious form, to elder abuse. More than a third of elderly patients, and approximately half of patients over 85 years of age, use 119 ambulances as a means of transportation to go to the emergency department.
This trend will be more noticeable among older women with each new cohort in the coming decades of this century. Emergency medical services must be adjusted and changed in accordance with the increase in the elderly population and the corresponding medical expenditure. Older age is more commonly used to describe a person's age or to group older people according to their age, while geriatric is considered a more medicalized term. Many cultures support a vision of the world that holds older people in high esteem and considers them a collective source of accumulated wisdom born of deep and mature experience.
As a result of these factors, doctors will care for an increasing number of older people with multiple medical problems, some of which are uniquely associated with aging itself (e.g.
