Health of Older Adult

Running head: HEALTH OF OLDER ADULT
Health of Older Adult
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1HEALTH OF OLDER ADULT
Life expectancy in New Zealand
Kontis et al. (2017, 1355) are of the viewpoint that the life expectancy of an organism
can be defined as a statistical measure of the average amount of time that the organism is
expected to survive on earth from its birth to death. According to the “United Nations World
Population Prospects 2015 Revision”, the average life expectancy of the male human beings
at birth is 67 years (Life expectancy at birth, total (years) | Data, 2018). On the other hand,
the average life expectancy of females at birth is 71.1 years (Life expectancy, 2018).
The average life expectancy of the individuals in the nation of New Zealand is 81.61
years as per the data of 2016 (Life expectancy, 2018). However, it is seen that there is a
variation in the life expectancy rate of the individuals of the nation belonging to the different
demographics (Barer, 2017, 214). For example, it is seen that the life expectancy rate of the
people living in the major cities of the nation like Auckland and others is more than 82 years
(Life expectancy, 2018). On the other hand, life expectancy rate of the individuals related to
the various ethnic communities of the nation like Maori and others is below 75 years
(Stoddart & Evans, 2017, 61). Furthermore, it is seen that the people living in the southern
part of the nation have a higher life expectancy rate (of more than 5 years) than the people
living in the northern part of the nation (Life expectancy, 2018).
Wang et al. (2016, 1501) are of the viewpoint that the high life expectancy rate that
the people of the nation enjoy can be attributed to the high quality of the public health care
services offered by the health care system of the nation. The various governmental health
care policies like “Health and Disability Services Eligibility Direction 2011”, “New Zealand
Public Health and Disability Act 2000”, “Nationwide Service Framework (NSF)” and others
have contributed in a substantial manner towards this high rate of life expectancy (Life
expectancy, 2018).

2HEALTH OF OLDER ADULT
Life expectancy of individuals in Japan
The life expectancy rate of the individuals in the nation of Japan is one of the highest
ones of the world and there are many individuals in the nation who live way above the age of
100 years of age (Welcome to Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2018). As per the
World Health Organization (2018), “the average life expectancy in Japan is 84.2 years
old. Men live an average of 81.1 years, and women live an average of 87.1 years”. However,
there is a disparity in the life expectancy rate of the individuals living in the different parts of
the nation. For example, it is seen that the people living in the rural areas have a higher life
expectancy rate than the ones living in the cities (Veroff & Veroff, 2016, 197). This can be
attributed to the fact that the people in the rural parts of the nation have access to better
quality natural resources than the ones living in the cities of the nation. More importantly, it
is seen that the life expectancy of the individuals in the nation has increased by three years in
the last five years (Life expectancy, 2018).
Chatterji et al. (2015, 575) are of the viewpoint that one of the major reasons for the
high life expectancy rate of the individuals of the nation is the nutritious diet which the
people of the nation consume. In addition to this, it is seen that the public health care services
which are being offered to the people of the nation by the governmental authorities is on par
with the ones offered by the developed nations like USA, Canada and others (Hughes et al.,
2015, 193). The national government of the nation over the years has formulated various
kinds of policies which had contributed in a substantial manner to increase the life
expectancy rate of the individuals of the nation. In this regard, it needs to be said that the
national government of the nation bears more than 70% of the health care costs incurred by
the individuals of the nation (George, 2018, 185). Furthermore, the nation, at the same time,
bears more than 90% of the health care costs for the people belonging to the below the
poverty line (Stoddart & Evans, 2017, 62).

3HEALTH OF OLDER ADULT
Comparison of life expectancy rate of Japan and New Zealand
The people of the nation of Japan enjoy a higher life expectancy rate in comparison to
the ones of New Zealand. It is pertinent to note that although the people of New Zealand have
access to far better health care services and also the policies of the national government of the
nation are far better than that of Japan (George, 2018, 186). However, this discrepancy in the
life expectancy rates of the two nations can be explained on the basis of the diet and also the
lifestyle of the people of Japan (Wang et al., 2016, 1502). It is pertinent to note that unlike the
people of New Zealand, people in Japan refrain from smoking, drinking and other kinds of
activities that can affect their health. In addition to this, the initiative of the national
government of Japan to bear the health care cost of the people has also contributed in a
substantial manner towards the enhancement of the same (Stoddart & Evans, 2017, 62). More
importantly, the suitable climate of Japan reduces the risks of chronic and other kinds of fatal
diseases and thereby enhances their life expectancy rate. These in short are some of the main
reasons for the higher life expectancy rate of Japan in comparison to New Zealand.
Recommendations
The three recommendations that the national government of New Zealand can follow
to increase the life expectancy of the older adult are-
 The national government of Japan bears more than 70% of the medical costs incurred
by the individuals and for the people belonging to below the poverty the authorities
bear more than 90% of the medical costs (Stoddart & Evans, 2017, 62). It is pertinent
to note that the individuals not only belonging to the older age brackets but to the
other age groups as well end up spending a substantial amount of capital on various
kinds of health and medical facilities. More importantly, it is seen that the quality of
these services or facilities depend to a large extent on the amount of capital that the