Respond to each entry as if you were responding to a colleague in class. Each response should be at least 200 words with 1 scholarly source.

Respond to each entry as if you were responding to a colleague in class. Each response should be at least 200 words with 1 scholarly source.

Number 1. Nothing mentioned in the article surprised me, but some of the information did provoke some thought. I work with the elderly patient population, many of which have been depressed or on anti-depressants. I imagine getting older poses mental, physical and emotional challenges that we will never be able to completely empathize with until we are there. I knew socializing was important for the older community, I did not realize it played such a vital role in self-perception or self-concept.

The article also mentions that caregivers should encourage elderly people to have a positive outlook toward aging (Geriatric Nursing, 2020.). This seems to be something that is much easier said than done. It also seems difficult to do with a depressed individual. Planting a seed and gradually retraining thoughts would be much easier when the individual is not already suffering from a resultant depression. Also, caregivers knowing they need to encourage positive thoughts toward aging and understanding how to encourage these thoughts are different beasts.

In order to influence others’ attitudes regarding aging, it is first important to make sure we have our own attitudes in check. It is hard to convince others when there is no buy-in yourself. A literature review conducted by Deasey, Kable, and Jeong (2014) showed that nurses are trained on recognizing diagnosis, but much less educated on recognizing and being therapeutic to the geriatric psychological issues.

Issues such as dementia management and empathy were lacking in nurses toward the geriatric community. Evidence shows that religious, cultural, and social systems and values all play a role in how the individual nurse views the geriatric patient. Taking a look at each of these things and how we have been influenced by them helps us to recognize where our biases fall. This recognition and acknowledgement are an integral part of combating our own judgement and biases toward this population. It is only after we have addressed our own attitudes we can begin effectively influence others.

Number 2. Having worked in healthcare for several years now and mostly working with older adults I have come across many different kinds of individuals through various stages in life. I do think that many of us have certain ideas about what an older adult looks like and the many problems that come with ageing. It is also true that we expect older adults to have certain problems that many times are not true and have led to ageing biases and stereotypes. In the article “Psychological Care of the Elderly” (), they mention different factors that affect the older population.

One stereotype that they mention is that many expect the older adults to not be sexually active. They mention that it might not be the same as how it was when they were twenty but many can still lead a satisfying sexual and fulfilling life. Another stereotype or bias is that older adults can not learn or have decreased cognitive function. Although this can happen to many due to mental disorders and medical conditions, many older adults are still cognitively intact and should be treated that way.

According to Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development, older adults are also struggling to master the eighth stage of ego integrity versus despair. According to Lance and Munday (2017), in this stage the individual works through his or her life and achievements. They go through acceptance and disdain of life experiences. The goal is to master this stage and accept choices made and become more satisfied with oneself. If this does not happen an individual will feel disdain at not being able to start over as ageing happens and they approach death.

Nurses play an important role in influencing attitudes towards ageing and older adults. I think the first step is to understand why many people have negative views towards older adults and ageing. According to an article by Wyman, Shiovitz-Ezra and Bengel (2018), the origin of these negative attitudes and ageism comes from self-protection mechanisms to help us distance ourselves from the reminders of our future and inevitable death.

As nurses we can help educate on the reality of ageing. Individuals can still lead a fulfilling life and learn how to adapt to normal changes in the body. Older adults can still be physically active, sexually active, have fulfilling relationships and social lives. There are many resources to help and we can also educate on the importance of having a healthy lifestyle to promote healthy ageing.

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