DEMOGRAPHY OF AGING AND

IMPLICATIONS FOR HEALTH

AND NURSING CARE
GLOBAL AGING
GLOBAL AGING
 What is GLOBAL AGING means?

Unprecedented changes are occurring worldwide as

fertility and mortality rates decline in most countries
and as populations age.
Overview
● The world population continues to grow older rapidly as fertility
rates have fallen to very low levels in most world regions and
people tend to live longer
● When the global population reached 7 billion in 2012, 562 million
(or 8.0 percent) were aged 65 and over.
● In 2015, 3 years later, the older population rose by 55 million and
the proportion of the older population reached 8.5 percent of the
total population.
Overview
● With the post World War II baby boom generation in the United
States and Europe joining the older ranks in recent years and
with the accelerated growth of older populations in Asia and
Latin America, the next 10 years will witness an increase of about
236 million people aged 65 and older throughout the world.
● Thereafter, from 2025 to 2050, the older population is projected
to almost double to 1.6 billion globally, whereas the total
population will grow by just 34 percent over the same period.
Overview

● Yet the pace of aging has not been uniform.

● A distinct feature of global population aging is its
uneven speed across world regions and development
levels.
● Most of the more developed countries in Europe have
been aging for decades, some for over a century.
Overview
● In 2015, 1 in 6 people in the world live in a more developed
country, but more than a third of the world population aged 65
and older and over half of the world population aged 85 and older
live in these countries.
● The older populations in more developed countries are projected
to continue to grow in size, but at a much slower pace than those
in less developed countries, particularly in Asia and Latin America.
● By 2050, less than one-fifth of the world’s older population will
reside in more developed countries.
Overview
● There are great variations within the less developed world as well. Asia
stands out as the population giant, given both the size of its older
population (617.1 million in 2015) and its current share of the world older
population (more than half).
● By 2050, almost two-thirds of the world’s older people will live in Asia.
Even countries experiencing slower aging will see a large increase in their
older populations. Africa, for instance, is projected to still have a young
population in 2050 (with those at older ages projected to be less than 7
percent of the total regional population), yet the projected 150.5 million
older Africans would be almost quadruple the 40.6 million in 2015.
Overview
● Population aging, while due primarily to lower fertility, also reflects a human success story of
increased longevity. Today, living to age 70 or age 80 is no longer a rarity in many parts of the
world.
● However, increasing longevity has led to new challenges:
● How many years can older people expect to live in good health?
● What are the chronic diseases that they may have to deal with?
● How long can they live independently? How many of them are still working?
● Will they have sufficient economic resources to last their lifetimes?
● Can they afford health care costs?
● The world is facing these and many more questions as population aging continues.
The Impact of the Aging Population on Nursing

The proportion of elderly people in the U.S. population is growing, and

fast. According to the Administration on Aging, people age 65 and older
are expected to make up nearly 22 percent of the population by 2040,
compared to 14.5 percent in 2014.1 This demographic shift has serious
implications for many aspects of our society, but especially for the health
care industry — and for nurses in particular.
Older adults have specific health needs that nurses will need to anticipate
and adjust to accommodate to ensure optimal patient outcomes. Some of
those includes:

● Multiple chronic conditions.

● A need for home-based care
● Teamwork and Coordination
● Education
● Leadership
● Recognizing and Acting on Career Opportunities
Multiple chronic conditions.

1. As the human lifespan increases, so does the prevalence of chronic

illnesses: 68 percent of older adults have at least two chronic diseases.

2. It is estimated that by 2040, almost 160 million people in the US, most
of them elderly, will be living with chronic conditions.

3. Managing multiple chronic conditions successfully involves an

awareness of potential behavior changes, medication interaction and
potential side effects, and strategies for relieving pain and other
symptoms.
A need for home-based care
● A need for home-based care. Elderly and ill patients will require more in-home care
because they may no longer be able to handle tasks related to patient compliance. For
instance, they may need help with simple physical therapy exercises, organizing pills,
diet and meal planning and preparation, administering their own injections, doing
blood-pressure tests, and other requirements of their care plan. Their family members
or other caregivers may also need to be educated on how to help elderly patients fulfill
these responsibilities.
● These realities point to specific areas in which nursing is transforming in order to
continue to successfully deliver health care that meets the specific needs of elderly
patients.
Teamwork and Coordination

Nurses are already considered a vital part of a health care team and
regularly collaborate with their peers and other health care professionals.
As nurses are usually the main point of contact for patients, they are well
suited to handle the coordination and communication of integrated
strategies for the extremely complex nature of senior patient care. When
dealing with the multilayered challenges posed by senior patients, these
skills will be especially valuable
Education
The Institutes of Medicine’s “The Future of Nursing” report outlines the importance
of achieving higher levels of nursing education to keep up with the changes and
challenges of health care. Similarly, the demographic shift toward a greater
population of seniors indicates a need for more nurses to be educated in
gerontological issues. The Geriatric Nursing Education Consortium advocates for
enhanced instruction and coursework in geriatrics in Bachelor of Science in
Nursing programs.Nurses who have additional education in this area of health
care will be better able to anticipate, prepare for, and meet the needs of the influx
of geriatric patients.
Leadership

Nursing education at the bachelor’s level and up emphasizes leadership,

communication, and critical thinking skills. While these abilities are necessary in all
settings, they are particularly important when working with geriatric patients.
Nurses will potentially serve as the primary care provider for senior patients with
multiple chronic issues that do not require substantial physician intervention,
requiring nurses to take on a larger role in patient care planning and treatment. In
addition, effective communication skills will be required as family members step in
to help out with care for senior patients. Nurses will need to be able to clearly
explain treatment plans, answer questions, and address the concerns of both
patients and their caregivers.
Recognizing and Acting on Career Opportunities

One way that nurses can prepare for this demographic shift is to
proactively consider potential areas for professional development and
opportunity. They may consider specializing in geriatrics or related fields
to fill the need for expertise and nurse leadership in these areas. They
may also focus on designing clinical and administrative home care plans
for elderly patients as part of a health care organization’s overall strategy
for effective patient care delivery. Or they can focus on educating future
generations of nurses in the treatment of senior patients.
Recognizing and Acting on Career Opportunities

These sweeping demographic changes will likely require

legislative action and policy development across many areas
of American life. Health care is likely to act as the “canary in
the coal mine,” forced to deal with the realities and needs of
an aging population before other industries do.

Make sure you are prepared to handle the demands an aging

population will make on the nursing profession.
Young Children and Older People as a Percentage of
Global Population: 1950-2050