In many ways, ageism is alive and well in the United States. Although we’ve all become a lot more aware of certain types of prejudice and stereotypes in our culture over the discord of the last several years, ageism has largely been ignored by most portions of our society. And unfortunately, it’s our older loved ones that are most negatively impacted by this unfair attitude.
Ageism is any sort of prejudice that places one age group above or below other people. When we think about senior citizens, ageism describes any sort of prejudice that ignores or doesn’t give the rightful amount of attention to the problems and concerns that older people face.
When it comes to the health and safety of those that we love, ageism can have profoundly negative consequences. One way that this clearly manifests itself is when an employer doesn’t hire an individual because they are of advanced age. This happens far more often than you might think, although it doesn’t happen as much with the population that we serve on a regular basis.
Ageism really starts to take its toll on those that we love when it impacts their ability to get the care and attention that they deserve. If ageist attitudes and perceptions take away someone’s ability to get high quality senior care or health care, then the issue becomes far more severe. Unfortunately, this rarely happens in an overt manner. More often, it is doctors focusing on medicine that is geared toward younger populations or people not being willing to go into the care industry because senior citizens are subtly not viewed as important as others where this happens. This is a hard attitude to talk about because it’s so hard to recognize it for all of the things that it truly is.
A recent study published in JAMA Network revealed that the people most likely to suffer from being the targets of ageism were those that were suffering from physical disability or were already experiencing mental health issues. Ageism can only make issues like this even worse for those suffering.
Some experts believe that ageism is the most overlooked form of discrimination that our society is currently experiencing. It’s not as well known as things like racism as sexism, and because of that, it isn’t as easy to spot. But that doesn’t mean that it isn’t harmful.
Ageism might not be something that one person or even one group of people can readily bring an end to. It’s much like every other form of discrimination in that manner. It will take the efforts of many different groups of people before it gets the serious attention that it deserves. But until then, being aware of the impact of ageism and taking steps to avoid it can go a long way toward helping the people around you to live a better life.
You should always feel like you can talk about these concerns with the professionals that work with you and your older loved ones. Ageism is a valid concern, and talking about it openly will only help others to be more aware of its impact, too.
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