Newfie wrote:The alternative is to have that laid off worker making $0/year. So how is that going to work? We have $13k/year (using your $) for elder care and to support that unemployed worker. Do we now use that same $13k to take care of the elderly, the unemployed worker and an immigrant?
Newfie, you are creating a false binary choice here of take an elder care job or remain unemployed. The real world doesn't work like that. Yes, change including automation and AI causes job losses. But change also creates new jobs. And not just in the elder care sector. Other sectors of the economy are growing jobs as well. Here is a list of the top ten sectors expecting job growth over the coming decade:
Which industries are expected to thrive and grow the most over the next decade? Technology, unsurprisingly, comes out on top. "Technology is at the heart of nearly everything we do and experience these days." Tech companies outperformed other industries "across the board." "A decade ago, tech investors mainly invested money in communication tools, social networks, and software as a service. Now, the universe of companies that call themselves technology companies has grown tremendously." Health and energy place second and third in the ranking, respectively.
If you're planning to start a new business, or to join one that's expected to flourish, here are the top 10 booming industries.
10. Transportation
9. Real estate
8. Finance
7. Hospitality
6. Construction
5. Consumer retail
4. Media
3. Energy
2. Health
1. Technology
Career decision coming up? The Top 10 industries that are adding jobs and thrivingNewfie wrote:What I’m advocating is that we plan for the transition. We socially elevate the position of the elder care worker, give them training and status. Start thinking about what’s wrong with the current system (plenty) and fixing it.
Do I think this will happen? No, because of our capitalist/consumerist culture. There’s no money in it taking care of people. Look at what a Masters Degree in Social Work pays. $13k. But these changes will be forced upon us none the less.
How exactly will these changes be forced on us? In Japan, the elderly are being sent to prisons. In the US, conditions in nursing homes are projected to go from bad to worse in the coming decades. Doesn't exactly sound like an elevation of elder care to me.
Our elderly population is growing – by 2030, one in five Americans will be at least 65 years old. One of the most pressing problems with this is the lack of doctors training to be geriatricians, or doctors who specialize in treating the elderly. The next generation of senior citizens (meaning the baby boomer generation) will be sicker than those before it. The Foundation estimates 55% more senior citizens will have diabetes, 25% more will be obese, and the next generation will be 9% less likely to claim they’re in good health. But fewer and fewer doctors are training to be geriatricians. Even our current workforce is not properly trained to deal with elderly patients, including physical therapists and psychologists.
The Future of Nursing Homes As A Business
The elderly need specialized care so they can live happy, productive and full lives. If they’re unable to get the treatments they need, they quickly fall to sickness, immobility, and dementia. Seniors will be forced to live in nursing homes to gain access to trained nursing and medical care. Unless something drastically changes in the industry, these facilities will not be equipped to care for the aging population properly and safely. The quality, funding, and capacity simply isn’t there.
Overworked, improperly trained staff are more likely to overmedicate residents that they don’t know how to deal with. Two-thirds of residents receive psychoactive medications. In fact, over-use of antipsychotic drugs like Seroquel is so rampant, governments and legislatures have had to take action. Giving residents medications they don’t need to control their behavior is called chemical restraint. Nursing assistants provide most of the care in nursing homes, but their training is minimal. If a staff member misinterprets a resident's behavior as aggressive, or if they just don't have enough time to provide the care a resident needs, they often turn to powerful drugs to sedate them. This is especially true for residents with dementia.
How the Doctor Shortage Affects Nursing Home ResidentsThe nursing shortage in the United States adds to the growing problem of how to provide appropriate care for senior citizens who need nursing home services. Nursing homes have lost funding in recent years; in addition, more and more senior citizens are in need of nursing home services. Thus, experts predict that by the year 2050, there will be 18,000 more seniors who need nursing home care than there will be beds to house them.
Cuts in Reimbursement
Since most seniors rely on Medicare and Medicaid to help them pay for nursing home care, cuts in these programs significantly affect how many people can afford nursing care. In 2011, the federal government cut reimbursement to nursing homes from Medicare by 11 percent. Nursing homes tend to lose money on Medicaid patients, as Medicaid doesn’t pay for the entire cost of the patient’s treatment. However, it is illegal for Medicaid certified homes to turn any patient away who is on Medicaid and/or no longer has enough financial resources to pay for care. As a result, nursing homes don’t have the money they need to keep themselves open and provide appropriate care to all patients.
The main consequence of these problems is that many nursing homes have had to cut staff, and more cuts are expected in the future. Nursing homes simply cannot afford to pay for all of the staff they need to stay open because of lack of funding and their patients’ inability to pay for nursing home care themselves. As a result, nursing homes tend to be understaffed, and this problem is going to get worse over time.
While nursing homes are struggling to admit patients and care for them properly, the number of patients that need nursing home care services is steadily increasing. People are living longer–it’s not uncommon for people to live into their 90s or even reach 100 years of age–and the baby boom generation is reaching retirement age. According to MSN Money, by 2030, 20 percent of the US population will be over 65, and the number of 85-year-olds and 100-year-olds will double or triple. Many of these people will need nursing care services.
Nursing homes will need more funding in order to keep up with these changes in demographics. If funding continues to decline, there will be less nursing homes available to take care of the number of patients needing nursing care services, and those homes that are open will not be able to hire enough staff to take care of the patients.
Nursing Shortage: What the Future Holds for Nursing Homes
The oil barrel is half-full.