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Poverty of elderly people in EU25: first report: revised July 2006
- Authors:
- ZAIDI Ashgar, et al
- Publisher:
- European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research
- Publication year:
- 2006
- Pagination:
- 63p., tables
- Place of publication:
- Vienna
- Edition:
- Rev. ed.
These findings are that, in the early years of the 21st century, about 13 million elderly people are at risk of poverty in 25 EU member States, amounting to as many as one-in-six of all 74 million elderly people living in EU. Cyprus, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Greece and the United Kingdom are identified as the countries with the highest poverty risk for the elderly population. The new member States are largely countries with the lowest risk of elderly poverty. In 14 out of all 25 member countries the elderly populations are more often at risk of being poor in comparison to working-age populations. The relative risk of elderly poverty is particularly high in Cyprus, Ireland and Slovenia. Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, the Netherlands and Luxembourg are at the other end of the spectrum, where the elderly are better protected against the risk of poverty than the working-age individuals. In the majority of countries, the poverty risk is clearly higher for female elderly - more so in EU15 than in the new member countries. In general, it can be seen that females aged 75 and over show the highest at-risk-of-poverty rates.
Co-morbid and socio-demographic factors associated with cognitive performance in an elderly community dwelling Irish population
- Authors:
- CHIN Ai-Vyrn, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 21(12), December 2006, pp.1150-1155.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Epidemiological studies suggest an association between health factors and dementia. The impact of these factors on the cognitive performance of the elderly population is unclear. Possible correlates of poor cognitive performance in a community dwelling elderly Irish population were examined. Subjects were from a sample of individuals over 65 years agreeable to interview using the Geriatric Mental State (GMS)-Automated Geriatric Examination for Computed Assisted Taxonomy (AGECAT) package conducted at the subject's home. Associations between patient profiles and Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score were investigated in amultivariate model. There were 793 subjects, 528 (66.6%) female with mean (s.d.) age 74.8 (6.7) yrs. Mean MMSE score was 26.5 (3.3). 169 (21.3%) were current smokers, 198 (25%) ex-smokers. Two hundred and twenty-four (28.3%) had a history of hypertension, 85 (10.7%) case level anxiety or depression, 51 (6.4%) stroke, ten (1.3%) epilepsy, nine (1.1%) Parkinson's disease and 29 (3.7%) dementia. Two hundred and fifty-five (32.2%) subjects were on psychotropic medications. Factors associated with MMSE score included age (p 0.0001), diagnosis of dementia (p 0.0001), socioeconomic group (p 0.0001), education (p 0.0001), previous stroke (p = 0.0013) and use of psychotropic medication (p = 0.03). Case level anxiety or depression (p = 0.99), Parkinson's disease (p = 0.52), epilepsy (p = 0.26), smoking status (p = 0.99) and hypertension (p = 0.34) were not found to be associated with cognitive performance. Factors associated with cognitive performance included age, socioeconomic group, education, previous stroke and use of psychotropic medication. These factors should be adjusted for in studies assessing cognition in this population. Stroke prevention strategies and avoidance of psychotropic medication may benefit cognitive performance.
Pension policy in EU25 and its possible impact on elderly poverty: second report: revised July 2006
- Authors:
- ZAIDID Ashgar, MARIN Bernd, FUCHS Michael
- Publisher:
- European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research
- Publication year:
- 2006
- Pagination:
- 109p.
- Place of publication:
- Vienna
- Edition:
- Rev. ed.
This report provides insights into how pension reforms may impact on retirement incomes and risk of poverty among future pensioners. One common trend is that the generosity of pension benefits drawn from the public pension systems is on the decline. Moreover, reforms have changed in most instances the nature of pension provision from defined-benefit type provision to defined-contribution type provision. In general, this type of change shifts more pension risks towards the generation of current working age individuals, and also results in a more restrictive possibilities of redistribution to lower income individuals. In turn, it is likely that more and more pensioners will fall back on the means-tested social assistance benefits (where available) or else experience poverty.
Elderly suicide and the 2003 SARS epidemic in Hong Kong
- Authors:
- CHAN San Man Sandra, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 21(2), February 2006, pp.113-118.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Hong Kong was struck by the community outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003. In the same year, the elderly suicide rate in Hong Kong showed a sharp upturn from a previous downward trend. Secondary analyses using Poisson Regression Models on the suicide statistics from the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Government were performed. In a Poisson Regression Model on the annual suicide rates in elders aged 65 and over in years 1986-2003, 2002 served as the reference year. Suicide rates in 1986-1997 were significantly higher than the reference year, with an Incident Rate Ratio (IRR) of 1.34 to 1.61. However, rates in 1998-2001 did not differ from the reference year significantly, representing stabilization of suicide rates for 4 years after 1997. The elderly suicide rate increased to 37.46/100,000 in 2003, with an IRR of 1.32 (p = 0.0019) relative to 2002. Such trend is preserved when female elderly suicide rates in 1993-2003 were analyzed, while suicide rates in elderly men and younger age groups did not follow this pattern. Mechanistic factors such as breakdown of social network and limited access to health care might account for the findings. These factors could have potentiated biopsychosocial risk factors for suicide at individual levels, particularly in elderly. Female elders, by way of their previous readiness to utilize social and health services instituted in the past decade, are thus more susceptible to the effects of temporary suspension of these services during the SARS epidemic. The SARS epidemic was associated with increased risk of completed suicide in female elders, but not in male elders or the population under 65 years of age.
A profile of older people in Northern Ireland: annual update (2015)
- Author:
- NORTHERN IRELAND. Statistics and Research Agency
- Publisher:
- Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency
- Publication year:
- 2015
- Pagination:
- 126
- Place of publication:
- Belfast
The fourth in a series of annual statistical reports produced to highlight the socio-economic circumstances of older people in Northern Ireland, monitor changes in their circumstances over time and the factors that cause them to be at risk of exclusion. Chapters cover: population estimates and projections; health, residential care, community care and carers; numbers and characteristics of pensioner households; composition of low income pensioner groups; risk of falling into low income pensioner groups; comparison of low income groups in Northern Ireland and the UK; lifestyle, including access to the internet; fuel poverty; and crime. Findings reported include: that number and proportion of older people in the population is steadily increasing and is projected to continue to do so; as age increases so does the likelihood of them suffering a long term condition; and that households headed by older people were much more likely to be living in fuel poverty than other households in 2011. (Edited publisher abstract)
Generation R: risk resilience ready for ageing?
- Authors:
- IPARRAGUIRRE Jose, RAY Sujata
- Publisher:
- Age UK
- Publication year:
- 2014
- Pagination:
- 27
- Place of publication:
- London
This report investigates the extent to which people in their 50s and early 60s, sometimes known as ‘baby boomers’, are ready for ageing. The report draws on statistical analysis on a sample of 4,547 people born between 1946 and 1960, which identified seven distinct clusters and an index of readiness while a more in depth understanding of the clusters was obtained via qualitative research which explored the experiences, attitudes and opinions of the cohort. A mixed methods approach was used, including discussion groups and in-depth, ethnographic interviews. The findings highlight a considerable diversity across this age group, which the report calls ‘Generation R’ to reflect their risk, resilience and readiness for ageing. The research shows that readiness for ageing is not statistically related to gender while being married or cohabiting, compared to being single, widowed or divorced is associated with being more ready for ageing. Economic activity and level of education are related to readiness. Compared to other indicators of wealth, pension wealth had a relatively low influence on readiness scores. Poor health, disability and risky lifestyle factors had a negative impact on readiness for ageing. This age group considers theirs to be a resilient, hard-working generation that does not expect or rely on hand-outs and places great value on independence and self-sufficiency. (Original abstract)
Migration, social structure and old-age support networks: a comparison of three Indonesian communities
- Author:
- KREAGER Philip
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 26(1), January 2006, pp.37-60.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Contemporary trends in population ageing and urbanisation in the developing world imply that the extensive out-migration of young people from rural areas coincides with, and is likely to exacerbate, a rise in the older share of the rural population. This paper examines the impact of migration on vulnerability at older ages by drawing on the results of anthropological and demographic field studies in three Indonesian communities. The methodology for identifying vulnerable older people has a progressively sharper focus, beginning first with important differences between the communities, then examining variations by socio-economic strata, and finally the variability of older people's family networks. Comparative analysis indicates considerable heterogeneity in past and present migration patterns, both within and between villages. The migrants' contributions are a normal and important component of older people's support, often in combination with those of local family members. Higher status families are commonly able to reinforce their position by making better use of migration opportunities than the less advantaged. Although family networks in the poorer strata may effect some redistribution of the children's incomes, their social networks are smaller and insufficient to overcome their marked disadvantages. Vulnerability thus arises where several factors, including migration histories, result in unusually small networks, and when the migrations are within rural areas.
Gender differences in the contributions of risk factors to depressive symptoms among the elderly persons dwelling in a community, Japan
- Authors:
- KATSUMATA Yuriko, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 20(11), November 2005, pp.1084-1089.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The aim was to examine the relative importance of risk factors associated with depressive symptoms and gender differences in exposure to the risk factors among the elderly persons living in the community. The data came from the Minamifurano-town Aging Study, a community-based sample of non-institutionalized elderly persons aged 65 years or older. Of the 731 eligible subjects, 665 were assessed for four domains of the potential risk factors (demographic characteristics, health and disability, stress, and social networks) and depressive symptoms according to the 30-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). The mean overall GDS-score was 10.9 (SD 6.2), 10.2 (SD 6.0) in men and 11.6 (SD 6.4) in women. The stress domain in men and the health and disability domain in women contributed most to the explanation of the variation in the GDS-score. Stress for men and health and disability status for women were important factors associated with depressive symptoms. Future studies should determine whether modification of these factors may prevent depression among the elderly persons living in the community.
Assessing risk factors for mortality in elderly white and African American people: implications of alternative analyses
- Authors:
- KUCHIBHATLA Maragatha, FILLENBAUM Gerda G.
- Journal article citation:
- Gerontologist, 42(6), December 2002, pp.826-834.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
The aim of this study was to ascertain whether the determinants of death differ as a function of type of analysis in a representative sample of older African American and White people with comparable mortality rates. It was found that risk factors for mortality were comparable, but the constellation of characteristics indicating higher risk for death differed between African American and White people. The analysis used may influence the type and manner of intervention.
Financing the future: mind the gap!: the implications of an ageing population; key findings and proposed actions
- Editors:
- BAKER David, PRICE Marcus
- Publisher:
- Financial Services Authority
- Publication year:
- 2002
- Pagination:
- 43p.
- Place of publication:
- London
This report examines the pensions crisis and advises on the risks involved, and the alternatives available to both employers and employees.