Ageing, Health and Care

The ageing of the population has enormous policy implications for the provision of, and access to, health care. People aged 65+ are the major consumers of the health care system accounting for about half of all NHS resources. Furthermore those aged 85+ represent 1 percent of the population but consume 10 percent of all health-care resources. Christina Victor's important new textbook provides: a comprehensive overview of the health status and experiences of older people; chapters on physical health, mental health, disability, and lifestyle; a synthesis of current policy developments relating to health and social care for older people; an examination of the key debates concerning the health of future cohorts of elders; and, an international, up-to-date perspective.Written by a leader in the field, the book covers key questions such as the fitness of older people in the future, the widening inequalities in the health of older people and the extent to which health in old age reflects habits and behaviour in earlier life.