Loneliness Among The Elderly Research Paper

Elderly people have and are facing an intriguing yet devastating problem: loneliness. While loneliness is usually thought of as just a psychological state, there are many physical health ramifications. Loneliness is complex and detrimental for health for all ages, but elderly people especially often have limited means of solving it. While younger individuals usually have the ability to go out and meet with people, the elderly may not have this same opportunity. Many suffer alone with increasingly deteriorating health, agonizing as they have few means of effective communication with others. Generally when people think of loneliness they fail to recognize its multifaceted effects, as well as its reach to the general population. We must not overlook …show more content…
Those responsible for taking care of them should be held more accountable for decisions regarding their aging relatives or friends. In England, The Silver Line, a helpline for the elderly to call when they need someone to talk to, has tried to combat loneliness. Founded in 2012, The Silver Line receives over 10,000 calls a week and continues to grow (https://www.thesilverline.org.uk/what-we-do/growing-the-silver-line-helpline/). This same service could be implemented in the United States. Schools could routinely send students to check in with the elderly in retirement homes or homes, be it annually or more often. Many schools have service requirements for their students which this could fill. One nursing home in Seattle actually doubles as a preschool, with the school's children able to interact with the elderly there. Benefits abound not just for the elderly but for the youth too, from experience to perspective (https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/01/the-preschool-inside-a-nursing-home/424827/). Although the issue of loneliness in the elderly is significant, there are many steps towards a