Argumentative essay

Old Age Home Care is Better Option for Elderly Individuals.

Globalization is a new reality where basic acceptance of a dynamic world is required. Having an old age home care Centre was considered as an issue related to tradition and culture in the olden days. However, given the livelihood issues faced by elderly people today, one has begun to think that an old age home is a place where senior people live after they have been abandoned by their families or have voluntarily moved in to avoid loneliness at a crucial juncture in their lives. Therefore, an old age home is a better place for them as it provides superior health facilities, provides a state of inner tranquility, and dispels the unavailability of full time support from their children.

Firstly, senior individuals need to reside in an old age home as they offer better health care services. According to Veda & Gadkar (2017), an old age home provides medical care facilities such as professional nurses, visiting doctors, regular checkups, comfortable bedrooms, and provides sufficient and suitable food. Counselors are made available for older individuals to provide emotional support and to help curb mental illness. To promote physical fitness, events such as yoga and workouts are offered. It provides protein-rich foods that help promote bone health and muscle strength. To regulate the digestive system and lower the risk of heart disease, a healthy diet with fiber is offered which is indeed challenging back at home. Vitamin D-containing foods such as cereals and milk are served as breakfast for boosting the immune system. A cross-sectional study conducted in Geriatric home service in Erbil city by Sangar stated that most of the elderly people are satisfied with the health services provided such as Nutrition Program 76%, Room services 76%, bathing services 88%, Hygiene 84% and clothing 60% (2015, p.195-198).Due to the availability of such health-related services, elderly members of society can spend their final years in peace and free from worry that their health problems will be disregarded.

Secondly, a nursing home for the elderly is a place where they can find inner peace and tranquility. Peace is a state of mind that promotes harmony and is free of violent conflict. Inner tranquility becomes a crucial component in old age which is often neglected back at home by their children. According to Ranjkumari (2021, p.2), the main reason for elderly people to leave home and are happier to live in an old age home is due to verbal assault by daughter-in-law (42.02%), verbal assault of son(10.14%), issues related to money(14.49%), no one to provide care(8.69%) and physical abuse(7.25%). Such acts at home disregard their serenity. On the other hand, old age home provides session for meditation and religious discourses that enables them to live a life free from fear and violence (Acharya, 2008). Especially at a later stage of life, meditation becomes essential as it provides a state of calmness, peace, and balance which is beneficial to cope with emotional feelings and stress by focusing on a particular thing. Morone (2014, p. 610-612) states that “meditating in an effective way lowers their blood pressure and heart rate and experience well-being”. Religious belief plays several roles in day to day lives of senior citizens which include it being an origin of strength, comfort, and hope in challenging times (Malone, 2018). As a result of such requirements in old age, a nursing care home is a better option to avail services of good meditation practices and to boost spirituality for inner peace of mind.

Lastly, busy schedules of children prevent them from adequately caring for elderly parents. As stated by Rokach & Boulazreg (2020), elderly people suffer from chronic loneliness due to their children’s ignorance. Young people’s workload forces them to put more emphasis on their jobs and ignore their parent’s illnesses, both mental and physical. Anxiety from work is instead vented at home to the parents who spend the entire day at home hoping their child would come and talk, comfort, and care for them. However, in old age homes, elderly people within their age range are kept together where they can share all their problems, comfort and provide a helping hand to each other. A retiree, Sonam Tshewang said with the rising problems of monetary issues in Bhutan, people do not have enough time to look after the elderly people (Wangdi, 2022). Many children are abroad, especially in Australia, and their old parents are left alone back at home. It does not necessarily mean that their children do not love them but has reasons to leave. In such cases, having an old age home care center not only provides them with better care but also helps them not to feel the absence of their child.

To conclude, facilities in an old age homes are better for elderly individuals. A nursing home for the elderly offers medical services including qualified nurses, visiting physicians, routine checks, cozy bedrooms, and healthy meals. Additionally, it offers meals high in protein that supports bone health and muscle strength. They can discover inner peace and tranquility at a care home for the elderly. As people age, maintaining inner peace which is sometimes ignored at home by their children becomes increasingly important. Having an elderly home care facility nearby not only enables them to receive better care but also lessens the impact of their child's absence. Therefore, an old age home is a better option for elderly individuals.

written by Ambika Chhetri from Bhutan.