Social Work

Families often play an essential role in providing care to older adults. It is estimated that between 70 and 80 percent of the help received by older adults in the community is provided by family members (Cox et al.). This figure undermines the myth of family abandonment that arises from stories of families who leave an elderly member at the emergency department and then refuse to take that person home. With the financial restraints that the U.S. health care system is facing at the beginning of the twenty-first century, the number of older adults requiring families to provide their care is expected to grow. Social workers are concerned not only with the older adult but also with the family or caregiver, because it is essential that the family be included in all aspects of care planning.