Gerontological nursing

Woman in a residential care home receiving a birthday cake

Gerontological nursing is the specialty of nursing pertaining to older adults.[1] Gerontological nurses work in collaboration with older adults, their families, and communities to support healthy aging, maximum functioning, and quality of life.[2] The term gerontological nursing, which replaced the term geriatric nursing in the 1970s, is seen as being more consistent with the specialty's broader focus on health and wellness, in addition to illness.[3][4]

Gerontological nursing is important to meet the health needs of an aging population.[3] Due to longer life expectancy and declining fertility rates, the proportion of the population that is considered old is increasing.[5] Between 2000 and 2050, the number of people in the world who are over age 60 is predicted increase from 605 million to 2 billion.[6] The proportion of older adults is already high and continuing to increase in more developed countries. In 2010, seniors (aged 65 and older) made up 13% and 23% of the populations of the US and Japan, respectively. By 2050, these proportions will increase to 21% and 36%.[7][8]

  1. ^ Canadian Gerontological Nursing Association. "CNGA 2014 Bylaw". Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  2. ^ Canadian Gerontological Nursing Association. "Gerontological Nursing Competencies and Standards of Practice 2010" (PDF). Canadian Gerontological Nursing Association. CGNA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 September 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  3. ^ a b Touhy, Theris A.; Jett, Kathleen F. (2014). Ebersole and Hess' gerontological nursing & healthy aging (4th ed.). St. Louis, Mo.: Elsevier/Mosby. ISBN 978-0-323-09606-5.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference gerontological nursing (eliopoulos) was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ World Health Organization (WHO). "Ageing". Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  6. ^ World Health Organization (WHO). "Interesting facts about aging". Archived from the original on September 18, 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  7. ^ Pew Research (2014-01-30). "Attitudes about aging: A global perspective". Pew Research. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  8. ^ Vincent, Grayson K.; Velkoff, Victoria A. "THE NEXT FOUR DECADES The Older Population in the United States: 2010 to 2050" (PDF). U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 7 July 2014.