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67
Aged, Infirm and Physically Incapacitated Persons.—
At the beginning of the century the average span of life in years was
50, compared with the present day figure of 68, and in more recent
times attention has been focussed on this trend towards an ageing
population.
Progress in civilisation, particularly in hygiene and of medicine,
has served to increase the average length of human life, but this
admirable advance in the expectation of life, gives rise to a corresponding
growth in chronic illness, disability, degenerative diseases
and mental and physical impairment. Frequency of circulatory
and renal diseases due to arterio-sclerosis increases sharply after
maturity has been reached and similar tendencies may be observed
with regard to hypertension, neo-plastic diseases, arthritis and
metabolic disorders such as diabetes mellitus, thyroid inadequacy,
etc.
Current opinion is that opportunities for further gains in
longevity are most likely to lie in a better appreciation of the chronic
diseases and it is, therefore, not inconsistent that medical interest
in geriatrics is increasing.
It is, however, a primary object of geriatric medicine to add
breadth and depth rather than length to life—to prevent and retard
the development of disorders of senescence and further to continue
the cultivation of the mind through adult education.
Unlike other branches of medicine which are limited by reason
of anatomy or therapeutics, the science of geriatrics deals not only
with the illness of elderly people but also with the mc dical problems
associated with normal ageing and therefore, is more an attitude of
mind to the progress and consequences of senescence. Should the
period of life between 40 and 60 years be one of good health and
vigour, then the best possible basis exists for the prevention of
premature ageing and disability and the following years could be
faced with the minimum of anxiety regarding physical and mental
wellbeing.
Prevention or amelioration of chronic diseases can best be
promoted by (a) preventive medicine, (b) diagnosis, (c) treatment
and rehabilitation, with emphasis on preventive medicine.
Doubtless it is superfluous to state that all old people were once
young, but in this truism lies the reason for the stress on preventive
medicine—care of the aged can be said to begin even before middle