Hundreds of thousands of citizens have advanced health needs in every community across the country. Often, these needs are overlooked and hard to meet in demographics such as the elderly or the particularly vulnerable.
Urban and rural locations alike have consistent struggles in maintaining personal healthcare demands, and this is why the system needs to step up to account for such discrepancies in care. It is not something to be taken for granted, as sufficient medical provision is not actually widely available to those who may need it most.
Living Alone
Living alone for a vulnerable person or an elderly person with advanced care needs is to their detriment. While it can’t always be avoided, as this is unrealistic, there need to be some considerations in this area. When a patient is flagged as ill or has ongoing medication requirements, it is apt to create a wider scope of responsibility to ensure care is not missed at the opportune moment.
Those living alone in weakened positions of self-advocation and in need of increased attention are not always capable of following through on, anticipating, or envisioning a table of treatments that would suit their profile. This is an area where there can be more assistance.
Transportation Factors
Sometimes, there is a need to move potential patients or sick people across the country to either move in with family and therefore widen their support network, or seek alternative care at a better equipped medical facility. For example, a patient in the advanced stages of a condition that causes cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer’s cannot be by themselves as it poses too much of a risk.
Services like flight angels exist to support patients like this should they need to travel, and this is a highly intuitive venture that fills a blatant gap in the healthcare market. It is vital that this type of service is brought to the attention of vulnerable people living alone so they understand the full range of options available to them, as often, access to information is yet another barrier to contend with in finding the correct care agenda.
The Cost of Healthcare
Health insurance is the main model of subscription across the country to gain access to services, but not everyone understands or has access to it. Regardless of the reason, those who are old (and infirm) and vulnerable still need to be looked after in the system by professional healthcare regimes. There is a noticeable lack of provision for this category, and the problem has surpassed what is acceptable in the context of social responsibility and consideration.
Conclusion
Accessible healthcare for the elderly and the vulnerable is vital. That is not to dismiss the ongoing need for the less pressing matters, but more to highlight the significant sliding scale of provision on offer. There are people living alone with no clue where to go or how to access help, worried about traveling, and not getting the treatment they deserve. For reform purposes and to protect the dignity of those who need it most, the system needs to look more deeply into these areas.