SWRK 1001H Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Population Health, Elder Abuse, Deinstitutionalisation
28 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
SWRK1001H: Introduction to Social Welfare
Tuesday, March 28th, 2017: Lecture Week 11
Older Canadians and Disability Issues
On the Value of Seniors…
“Seniors are a rich and vibrant part of our country. As we increasingly draw on seniors to meet labour force
requirements strained by decades of low fertility, our society has new motivations to value seniors as
contributing members of society, and not as a burden to be problematized”
Special Senate Committee on Aging, 2007, page 1
The global aging trend, as well as the large aging population in Canada, is due to three main factors:
1. The baby boomers: born between 1946 and 1965. Birth rates increased significantly at the end of
WWII, mainly due to women marrying at an earlier age and older families being more open to having
children, after WWII ended. The “baby boomer” generation is now moving into its senior years.
2. Increased life expectancy: Canadians are living longer because of improved medical technology and
access to better food
3. Declining birth rate: few children per family means that the overall population is older, and the
average age is higher
Why might an aging population be seen as a good thing?
- More jobs opening up as elderly people retire
- More reliance on things such as hospitals and retirement homes, more of those opening means more
jobs (supposed to be)
- Free daycare – informal supports
Why might an aging population be seen as a bad thing?
- As they retire, they become expensive (pensions, etc.)
- More elderly people than there are workers, there is no balance on those who are supporting the
elderly
Ageism
What stereotypes do we hold about elderly folks?
oBad drivers
oInnocent, incapable of harm
oOpenly racist, not open to new things (LGBTQ, immigrants) old school, conservative
oCrazy
oIncompetent
oIncapable of taking care of themselves
How are elderly folks discriminated against because of their age?
oCharge elderly people more because they have more money and can afford it
oLess likely to be hired unless its somewhere such as Walmart
How might stereotypes and discrimination impact how we construct social welfare policy for older
Canadians?
oMaking policy for a portion of the population, not for individuals
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Seniors are a rich and vibrant part of our country. As we increasingly draw on seniors to meet labour force requirements strained by decades of low fertility, our society has new motivations to value seniors as contributing members of society, and not as a burden to be problematized . Special senate committee on aging, 2007, page 1. The global aging trend, as well as the large aging population in canada, is due to three main factors: the baby boomers: born between 1946 and 1965. Birth rates increased significantly at the end of. Wwii, mainly due to women marrying at an earlier age and older families being more open to having children, after wwii ended. The baby boomer generation is now moving into its senior years. Increased life expectancy: canadians are living longer because of improved medical technology and access to better food.
