For my community trends assignment I learned about
conditions and trends among the elderly population in Leavenworth, Kansas. My
contact person was Lynette Bunker, who is a registered nurse at St. John’s
Hospital in Leavenworth. She identified the following health concerns in the elderly
population: uncontrolled diabetes, heart disease, obesity, generally unhealthy
lifestyles, and lack of access to mental health support.
As is
well known, the Midwest is home to very high percentages of diabetes, a fact
that Lynette explained when discussing diabetes. She said that diabetes in
Leavenworth is linked to all sorts of other health issues which will be
discussed later in this paper. The alarming part of this health concern is that
for the elderly diabetes becomes a problem because they are unwilling to follow
counsel and especially dietary recommendations given by their doctor. Many of
the health problems that occur due to diabetes could be prevented if people
simply followed the guidance of health care professionals. Because their
diabetes becomes uncontrolled, the elderly experience many adverse effects to
their health.
Heart
disease has been recognized worldwide as the number one cause of death and this
trend holds true for Leavenworth. Lynette said that she believes heart disease
to be the number one cause of death at St. John’s Hospital. This finding is not
surprising in relation to the elderly population because those living longer
are more likely to develop heart conditions. With a reduction in diabetes, I am
sure that there would also be a reduction in the amount of heart disease that
the elderly of Leavenworth experience. Public health efforts in the Leavenworth
area should educate the public on the risks and causes of heart disease to help
with its reduction.
Obesity
could fit in with diabetes and heart disease as the three poor-health amigos
currently affecting those in Leavenworth. Obesity and diabetes carry perhaps an
even greater correlation than diabetes and heart disease and so it is no
surprise that Lynette brought up obesity as a trend among the elderly. Obesity
can lead to so many other health issues that it is very alarming to know that
it is a current problem in Leavenworth. It is very likely that the attitude of
not following counsel for diabetes is the same attitude towards obesity and
maintaining a healthy weight. The factors of not following a healthy diet and
living an unhealthy lifestyle would undoubtedly be factors of the obesity
trend.
Having unhealthy
lifestyles is another condition that Lynette has noticed with the elderly
population in Leavenworth. There are different reasons for unhealthy
lifestyles, but regardless of the reasons lifestyle choices contribute a great
deal to the negative conditions discussed in prior paragraphs. One part of the
unhealthy lifestyle is that elderly people not getting adequate exercise due to
choice or due to being less physically able than they once were. Not exercising
can be a causative factor in all of the above mentioned conditions. Another
aspect of the unhealthy lifestyle is that older people heal more slowly, and so
as they get injured or sick their bodies will be weakened for longer periods of
time, opening them up to new sickness and injury. This leads to a downward
spiral of health that can be difficult to break. If the elderly population of
Leavenworth would strive to have healthier lifestyles, then many of their other
problems would go away.
The last
trend is somewhat unrelated to the other health trends, but equally as
important to address. It is that the elderly do not get adequate mental healthcare
due to two factors that Lynette discussed. The first is that there are not enough
mental healthcare providers in Leavenworth to help everyone. This is problematic
because the elderly have a high occurrence of mental health and should be able
to receive this help when they need it. The second is that many of the elderly
feel a certain stigma with having to get mental health help and thus choose to
deal with mental health conditions on their own. This is a dangerous thing because
mental health conditions are very serious and can lead to other health-threatening
conditions and situations. Public health efforts should be made to have more
mental healthcare providers and to educate the elderly on the importance of
getting mental health help when they need it.
With all
of these trends in mind, there is plenty of public health work to be done in
Leavenworth, Kansas.
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