AT2 Report: Examining Poverty, Health, and Strategies for Older Adults

This report investigates the prevalence and impact of poverty on the health of older adults in Australia. It begins by outlining the population group and the prevalence of poverty, highlighting the socio-economic factors such as lack of housing, limited healthcare access, and unhealthy lifestyle habits, including substance abuse, as key determinants. The report then explores the resulting health impacts, including increased rates of diabetes, malnutrition, mental health problems, and cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, the report recommends strategies to overcome poverty and improve health outcomes, emphasizing the role of government initiatives, subsidized housing, and improved healthcare access. The conclusion underscores the need for comprehensive interventions to address the complex challenges faced by older adults experiencing poverty in Australia.

Running head: AT2 Report
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Name of the Student
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Author Note

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A. Introduction
There are several population groups who are at risk of poverty like those who are
unemployed, single parent, children, Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders, older adults,
people with disabilities and people who receive government income support. The following
report will focus on the older adults of Australia and will try to examine the links between the
socio-economic status and its affect on the overall health outcome. The report will also
highlight how poor socio-economic status is leading to financial crisis and subsequent
development of poor health related outcomes. At the end, the report will focus on strategies
in order to address the alarming rate of poverty among the older adults of Australia. The
interventions will help in improving the overall health related outcomes of Australian older
adults.
B. Overview of your population group and prevalence of poverty
Older adults constitute a significant portion of the Australian population during the
year 2017. Nearly one out of seven people aged over 65 years and above. During 2014 to
2016, the Australian men who are aged 65 years are expected to live for another 20 years and
women for another 22 years (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2018).
(Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018)

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As per the report published by ACOSS AND UNSW SYDNEY (2018), the maximum
percentages of the Australian population who are below the poverty lines are the older adults
(lone person) and older couples rank second. During the year 2014-16, only one out of the 8
people who are 65 years and above are employed and rest and unemployed. However, under
the active initiatives of the government, the work-force participation among older adults in
Australia is increasing (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018).
Figure: Increase in the work-force participation during 2016 to 2018 among older adults in
Australia
(Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018)
C. Factors impacting on SES of the population group
Theoretical framework of Dahlgren and Whitehead or Turrell
According to the Dahlgren & WhiteHead’s Ecological Model the main Social
Determinants of Health (SDH) include the general socio-economic, cultural and the
environmental factors, this is followed by the social and the community level networks and
then more individualized factors. The general socio-economic, cultural and environmental
conditions include availability of food and productions, academic qualification, the

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surrounding professional environment and living condition (housing, water and sanitation)
and proper access to the healthcare service (Nyman 2018).
3 SES and linking with models
Morris, Staatsen and van der Vliet (2019) are of the opinion that the comprehensive
improvement of the mental and the physical well-being of the adult population, irrespective
of the age of the individuals is guided by the proper availability of the all the SDHs as
highlighted that Dahlgren & WhiteHead’s Ecological Model.
Lack of proper housing
The first SES affecting the older adults in Australia includes the lack of proper
housing. According to the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute the requirement
of housing under Australian context creates a huge financial burden over the older adults. In
Australia, there is lack of proper housing security and lack of proper affordable housing.
Moreover, the affordability of the housing complex, increases with geographic location. For
the older adults who used to stay in the quarters given by their organizations, experiences
financial crisis while planning to buy or rent house after their retirement. This high
affordability creates financial burden over the older adults leading to poverty.
Lack of proper healthcare service
The second SES includes lack of proper healthcare access. The Victorian State
Government regulates the public hospitals of Victoria. For urban areas are facilitated by the
Metropolitan Melbourne hospitals, health services, rural hospitals, and health services.
According to van Gaans and Dent (2018), there is lack of proper health care access among
the older adults who resides in the rural regions of Australia. This might be attributed due to
the lack of proper transportation, lack of availability of the proper healthcare professionals
and increased level of multi-morbidity. This lack of proper healthcare access lead to poor
health related outcomes. McPake and Mahal (2017) increase cost of care in the hospitals
leads to high health-related cost burden over the aging populations. The lack of proper low
premium health insurance policies among the retired older adults lead create a barriers
towards comprehensive healthcare access. Accessing minimal healthcare requirements
exposes this population to financial crisis and poverty. In the majority of the times, the basic
health needs remain unmet leading to high level of mortality and morbidity among the older
adults.

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Unhealthy lifestyle habits
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2019) stated that the older adults of
Australia are victims of the substance abuse. The cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug
in Australia followed by the use of the cigarettes and other alcoholic beverages. West et al.
(2015) are of the opinion that the substance abuse is regarded as one of the important
indicators of the unhealthy lifestyle habits among the older adults. Mainly the indigenous
population of are the victims of substance abuse. Increased level of substance abuse hampers
the social life, create finical burden while increasing the level of psychological distress. High
level of psychological distress hampers the overall health and well-being of the older adults.
Thompson et al. (2017) are opinion that homelessness and poverty is inter-related with
substance abuse. While homelessness is a significant public health problems and high rate of
substance abuse among the older adults of Australia increases the financial burden leading to
homelessness. In other words it can be said that both substance abuse and poverty
independently increase the prospective risk of first-time homelessness.
D. Health impacts of poverty for the population group
Diabetes
According to the reports published by Diabetes Australia (2012) nearly 1 million
Australians are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes each year and probability of the developing
diabetes increases with age. The older adults of Australia rank 6th on the basis of the
occurrence of diabetes. Poverty increases among the older adults increases create a barrier in
proper maintenance of the anti-diabetic plan and thus lading to uncontrolled blood glucose
level and gradually progression towards unmanaged yet severe type 2 diabetes. The older
adults who are victims of poverty as poor SES are more likely to suffers from poor
psychological health consequences like increases level of depression and anxiety. High level
of depression and anxiety increases the blood pressure level and thus increasing the
vulnerability of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus. The development of diabetes also
increases the vulnerability of developing other physical co-morbidities like renal impairment
and cardiovascular disease (Australian Government Department of Health 2016).
Malnutrition
Poverty is a multi-dimensional concept and is regarded as both the cause and
consequences of under-nutrition. The relationship between the poverty and under-nutrition

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has been acknowledged for years. The concept of healthy aging is defined by proper
consumption of healthy food that is rich in nutrition and low in fat and carbohydrate.
However, the older adults who are the victims of poverty are vulnerable towards developing
malnutrition. Malnutrition is associated with decreases in the lean body mass and bone
density that increases the chances of developing osteoporosis and arthritis. Numerous studies
have also reported that malnutrition or lack of consumption of adequate food leads to the
development of gastric ulcers followed by the development of low blood pressure or hypo-
tension. In other words, it can be said that malnutrition among the older adults is associated
with scarcopenia (decrease in the lean body mass) (Vandewoude et al. 2017).
Mental health problems
Poverty is also associated with complex mental health problems like development of
mental health problems among the older adults. This increases in the severity of poverty
among the older adults, leads to decrease in the proper access of the healthcare service.
However, one of the important parameter of the healthy aging is regular physical and mental
health assessment (Parkar 2015). Under the absence of the periodic mental health assessment,
the preliminary symptoms of anxiety and mood disorders remain unaddressed. The addressed
mental health complications gradually increase in the severity leading to the development of
severe yet chronic depression (Parkar 2015). Moreover, constant fighting against the basic
health needs of life under extreme financial crisis gives rise of frustration and fatigue that
ultimately cumulates in the depression development among the older adults (Parkar 2015).
Cardiovascular disease (CVD)
Health is an outcome of the relationship between the person and the environment.
There are also reciprocal relationships between multiple dimensions of the health and other
environmental condition. The prevalence of poverty among the older adults increases the risk
of developing somatic diseases like cardiovascular disease. Poverty is deemed as a major
societal determinates of the cardiovascular diseases among the older adults throughout the
world. CVD mainly centres on few factors like excessive psychological distress, material
deprivation, increased rate of anger, adoption of unhealthy coping behaviour (substance
abuse) and mental illness (Beard et al. 2016). The poverty also brings challenges in meeting
the basic of needs of life along with poor socio-economic status All these factors further
cumulates towards the development of the CVD among the older adults who are suffering
from poverty. Mainly lack of proper diet plan along with high rate of substance abuse
increases the vulnerability of developing CVD among the older adults (Beard et al. 2016).

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E. Recommended strategies to overcome poverty
The recommended strategies for fighting against poor health condition and poverty
are improvement of the SDHs. It is the duty of the Government of Australia (GoA) to come
forward with innovative policies to bridging the gaps between the poor socio-economic
determinants of health and poor health related outcomes. For example, the government of
Australia must come forward with subsidized housing complexes for the older adults how
resides below the poverty lines and the older adults of the indigenous population. The GoA
must also come forward with special insurance policies for older adults who resides below
the poverty lines (BPL) or retired or unemployment older adults. This easy access of
government subsidised healthcare will help in increases the health service access among the
older adults. Moreover, the government must also more forward with triage nursing and tele-
health nursing in the rural as well as remote areas as this will help to decreases the additional
cost of transportation for unwanted hospitalization. The decrease in the level of substance
abuse among the older adults is directly associated with the increase in the healthcare access
and proper housing facilities. Furthermore, the GoA must also come-forward with health
awareness campaign (community-based) to increase health literacy about substance abuse
among the older adults.
F. Conclusion
Thus from the above discussion it can be concluded that there is high prevalence of
poverty among the older adults in Australia. The victims are the Aboriginals and the Torres
Strait Islanders. According to the theoretical framework of Dahlgren and Whitehead or
Turrell, the SESs that coincide with the poor health status of the older adults include lack of
proper housing, lack of proper access to the healthcare access and increased rate of substance
use. All these poor socio-economic determinants of health lead to the generation of poverty
among the older adults. The increased rate of poverty among the older adults increases the
risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular disease, malnutrition and mental health problems
like depression and anxiety. The recommended strategies include active government
initiatives and increases in the coverage of the health insurance and subsidised housing
complexes will help to overcome the problems.

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