By 2030, 20 percent of the world's drivers, 60 million in all, will be over the age of 65. Consequently, safe and efficient mobility for older adults is a complex and pressing issue. Maintaining Safe Mobility in an Aging Society addresses the complexities surrounding the booming number of aging drivers and practical solutions for sustaining safe tr

Most older persons desire to remain living in the community, but those requiring care are often at risk of not having their needs met. Families may find themselves unable to care for their older relatives, while formal services are often unavailable or inaccessible. Policies and services are beginning to focus on the community rather than institutions as the primary axis for care. This book examines the many factors contributing to needs for care among older persons as well as the ways in which impairments are defined and responded to by both the individual and society. Focusing on practice and policy issues, Dr. Cox describes many of the early stage community care innovations that hold the promise of making contributions to the well-being and independence of the older population.

As people age, they are at increased risk of having their basic human rights threatened or violated. When age is perceived as incompetence, it can easily lead to discrimination that impacts human rights. Based on the premise that social policy must reflect human rights principles, this graduate-level textbook views the challenges associated with aging as opportunities for policy development that stresses the rights of older adults rather than needs. The text distinguishes between “needs” and “rights” and describes those policies and services that best ensure that the rights of older adults are actually met—particularly programs that enable people to remain in their own communities so they can benefit from continued integration and participation in society. Issues and challenges surrounding such efforts, and gaps in social policies faced by specific subsets of older people, are critically examined. The book first analyzes current aging policies and rights and considers the Older Americans Act as a basic policy framework. With an eye to promoting independence, the book discusses issues of income, housing, transportation, health, and home care and what constitutes a “livable community,” along with policies that promote wellbeing and focus on preventing senior abuse and exploitation. Challenges faced by older workers are covered, as are issues particular to family caregivers, older women, and grandparents as caregivers. Gaps in social policies for LG BT seniors and older members of specific ethnic groups are discussed. Particular attention is given to global issues and aging policies in diverse countries and the ways in which they reflect human rights concerns. Each chapter concludes with probing discussion questions for classroom use. KEY FEATURES: Presents a human rights framework for aging policy Distinguishes between needs and rights of older persons Focuses on policies and programs that can help older people to remain in the community Explores the issues and challenges of specific older populations Discusses global responses and concerns with regard to older persons and human rights Carole B. Cox, MSW, PhD, is professor at the Graduate School of Social Service, Fordham University. She is a fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and a Fulbright scholar. She is the author of more than 50 journal articles and chapters dealing with various aspects of aging and caregiving, with extensive research on caregivers for persons with dementia, their needs, and their use of services. Her recent work includes a study of the impact of dementia on the workplace. Her caregiving research also includes that of grandparents raising grandchildren, leading to the development of a curriculum, Empowering Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: A Training Manual for Group Leaders (Springer Publishing Company, 2000). She is the editor of To Grandmother’s House We Go and Stay: Perspectives on Custodial Grandparents (Springer Publishing Company, 2000). Her other books include Home Care for the Elderly: An International Perspective, coauthored with Abraham Monk (1991); The Frail Elderly: Problems, Needs, and Community Responses (1993); Ethnicity and Social Work Practice, coauthored with Paul Ephross (1998); Community Care for an Aging Society: Policies and Services (Springer Publishing Company, 2005); and Dementia and Social Work Practice (Springer Publishing Company, 2007).

Third in the series, this book addresses the social implications of architectural and interpersonal environments for older people. It suggests how society and its structures can enhance the productivity of, and preserve the quality of life for, older residents in a community. The study investigates new approaches to the problem, including new housing alternatives and new strategies for reflecting the needs of the elderly in housing construction.

Aging populations are generating both challenges and opportunities for societies around the globe. Increases in longevity and improvements in health raise many questions. What steps can be taken to optimize physical and cognitive health and productivity across the life span? How will older people finance their retirement and health care? What will be the macroeconomic implications of an aging population? How will communities be shaped by the shift in age structure? What global interconnections will affect how each society handles the aging of its population? To address these questions, the National Academies organized a symposium, summarized in the present volume, to determine how best to contribute to an evidence-based dialogue on population aging that will shape policies and programs. Presentations in the fields of biology, public health, medicine, informatics, macroeconomics, finance, urban planning, and engineering approached the challenges of aging from many different angles. The presenters reviewed the current state of knowledge in their respective fields, identifying areas of consensus and controversy and delineating the priority questions for further research and policy development.

"Recommended."--CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries "Coughlin and DíAmbrosioís edited volume is a welcome contribution to highlighting this issue for gerontologists. The collection is an informative and useful reference for students, researchers, practitioners, planners, and policy analysts"--The Gerontologist This solution-focused volume fills a gap in the literature by addressing the key issues around mobility and transportation for the aging Baby Boomer generation--issues that will be significantly different than those of previous generations of older adults. This new generation, many of whom will continue to work past the traditional retirement age and expect to pursue an active lifestyle, may have to confront new transportation technology, the need to use public transportation, and ways to continue driving safely as their eyesight fades and reaction time slows down. This volume examines many of the issues faced by policymakers, transportation officials, vehicle manufacturers, health and human services professionals, and aging adults themselves as the largest generation prepares to enter late adulthood. The volume's editors are both at the MIT AgeLab, whose multi-disciplinary team designs, develops and deploys innovations to enhance quality of life for aging populations. Through the contributions of a diverse group of theorists and practitioners, including recommendations from the National Older Driver Safety Advisory Council, a collaboration between AARP's Driver Safety Program and the MIT AgeLab, the book discusses several key topics pertinent to Aging America and transportation. Among them are the changing demographics of the population, how this generation's lifestyle choices affect mobility, technology trends in private vehicles, changes in the infrastructure and transportation system, the "new" older driver, and issues of safety and education among older drivers. This book also explores practical solutions and strategies, such as new transportation options and innovations that will significantly impact the future of mobility for older adults, for keeping these seniors active and mobile well into their later years. Key Features: Focuses on the unique mobility needs of the aging Baby Boomer generation Provides practical solutions and strategies for policy changes to enhance the mobility of older adults Examines issues faced by policymakers, transportation officials, vehicle manufacturers, health and human services professionals, and aging adults Discusses strategies for updating the infrastructure and transportation system, driving safety education for older drivers, and trends in private vehicle innovations

The Handbook of Social Work in Health and Aging is the first reference to combine the fields of health care, aging, and social work in a single, authoritative volume. These areas are too often treated as discrete entities, while the reality is that all social workers deal with issues in health and aging on a daily basis, regardless of practice specialization. As the baby boomers age, the impact on practice in health and aging will be dramatic, and social workers need more specialized knowledge about aging, health care, and the resources available to best serve older adults and their families. The volume's 102 original chapters and 13 overviews, written by the most experienced and prominent gerontological health care scholars in the United States and across the world, provide social work practitioners and educators with up-to-date knowledge of evidence-based practice guidelines for effectively assessing and treating older adults and their families; new models for intervention in both community-based practice and institutional care; and knowledge of significant policy and research issues in health and aging. A truly monumental resource, this handbook represents the best research on health and aging available to social workers today.

This book is the first book that investigates aging and its impacts on transport system in China. Using various data, this book covers, but is not limited to, the development of population aging, the changes of travel demand, the features of travel behavior of China’s elderly, progress and prospect of age-friendly transport in China. The book has international academic novelty in three points. Firstly, it discovers the long-term supply-demand relationship between population aging and transport infrastructure development. Secondly, it finds the changes and factors in travel behavior of the elderly people. Thirdly, it discusses the advantages or disadvantages of age-friendly transport policy. The findings in the book provide fresh evidences for the challenges posed by aging to transport and enhance readers’ existing knowledge of the elderly people’s travel behavior and the related determinants. These findings are helpful for planners and politicians to make age-friendly transport policies and useful for investors and enterprises to supply proper transport services to the elderly people. This book is of great interest to scholars and practitioners interested in transport development, transport policy, social transition, sustainable mobility, urban planning, urban governance and is relevant to China and other developing countries.

It is predicted that by 2050, 22% of the world's population will be over 60 years of age. This rapid shift in demographics calls for the development of coherent and forward-looking policies to address the many challenges which will inevitably arise as a result. This book presents 33 articles from the workshop jointly organized by APEC and OECD held in Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan, in September 2012. At this workshop, a group of international experts described a wide range of important issues associated with an aging population, and discussed how both governments and the private sector can best mobilize innovation and research to transform this global challenge into an opportunity for active and productive aging and new sources of sustainable growth. The authors call for a comprehensive approach to achieve policy coherence, as well as for strengthening public-private partnerships and promoting collaboration among multiple stakeholders and systems. The book is divided into six chapters, covering such subjects as lessons learnt from best practice, solutions for the aging society, policy initiatives, health innovation, smart communities and new services. Innovation will be necessary to meet the challenges and to mitigate the health, social and economic impacts of an aging population worldwide, as well as unlocking the potential of ICTs through increased research and new models. This book will be of interest to all those whose work involves the development of new services for older people in sectors such as health and nursing care, education and training, transportation, community development and smart cities, among others.