Читать книгу Pathy's Principles and Practice of Geriatric Medicine - Группа авторов - Страница 115

In an era of enhanced social awareness, ageism may be one of the last socially acceptable forms of prejudice. Defined as stereotyping, prejudice, or discrimination against people based on their age, ageism is pervasive and takes on many forms. Ageism can be institutionalized in the form of workplace discrimination or an insidious cultural norm that represents older adults as disabled, demented, or undesirable. It even can affect healthcare; providers and patients alike may dismiss disease processes such as delirium and disability as ‘normal ageing’ and miss opportunities for treatment.

Societal ageist beliefs lead to undervaluing the contributions of older people and providing inadequate resources for them. When older adults are excluded from the workplace due to mandatory retirement ages or other ageist policies, society misses out on critical economic contributions. Additionally, the workplace potentially loses opportunities for wisdom and mentorship by undervaluing experienced senior employees.

Occasionally, in an effort to recognize ageism, the media overcorrects, misrepresenting seniors in an idealistic ‘golden age’ or representing them as ‘cute’, thus unintentionally infantilizing the population. As a society, we should strive for balanced, realistic views of ageing and older adulthood. The Frameworks Institute (www.frameworksinstitute.org) has developed evidence‐based strategies to help individuals and societies combat ageism and improve the global ageing experience. These are summarized in Table 4.1.