Older People

Healthcare for older people in rural areas across Scotland has been deemed “not fit for the future” as funding and recruitment are moving too slowly to tackle the needs of the ageing population, a new report has warned. The Going the Extra Mile report from the Royal College of Nursing  written in collaboration with Age Scotland, sets out the need for a new and different approach to sustainable health and care services in the country’s most remote areas, where services and communities are ge

The blood of young people may hold compounds that benefit the brains of older people with Alzheimer's disease, so scientists are now looking at whether transfusions may help people with the condition.

Research in animals has shown that the blood of the young may counter some of the effects of aging in older brains. For instance, it might help to improve learning and memory, as well as generate new brain cells. Now, the scientists want to see if the benefits hold true in people. Read more here.

Wales’ Commissioner for Older People is “extremely disappointed” at the Welsh Government’s response to its call for action to protect residents in care homes.

The Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales (CSSIW) has also come under fire for failing to provide evidence it will deliver the results that older people need.

It is beneficial to stimulate older people to leave home to increase their level of physical activity, suggests the study of postdoctoral researcher Erja Portegijs. The study, conducted at the Gerontology Research Center of the University of Jyväskylä, showed that older people were more physically active on the days when they left home and went further away. Read more here.

A project that brings hens to older people in care settings, has joined with Notting Hill Housing to introduce the hens into two of the housing association’s extra-care sites. The project is supporting some 700 residents, including those with dementia, in more than 20 care homes in north-east England. Henpower’s launch in London last week is its first project outside the region. Read more here.

Older adults who have “successfully aged,” may be more prone to developing harmful drinking habits, says a recent study in BMJ Open. "Successful agers" are defined as adults who are healthy, active both physically and socially, and also wealthy. Researchers at Age UK focused on what forces might cause harmful drinking in older adults. The study included 9,251 men and women, all 50 or older, as part of the 2008-09 and 2010-11 English Longitudinal Study of Aging.

One of the great advances of the last century is that nearly all of us will live longer and with less disability than recent generations, Des O'Neill writes in the Irish Times.

Different cultures have different perceptions of mental illnesses – including dementia. In fact, in the UK, people from the south Asian community are more likely to approach their GPs for physical than mental health symptoms. With south Asian ethnic minority groups one of the largest minority groups in western countries, improving dementia care for south Asians is becoming increasingly more important. Read more here.