The family, I will argue, is the most complex aspect of the older adult client. The family comes with a history of dynamics that has taken years to develop, and will take just as many years to completely understand. The family is very frequently in the front lines of the aging process. The family sees and feels the affects of their loved one’s aging, either through illness, grandparenthood, finances, wisdom, etc. The only preparation the family has had is what they may have seen with the older generations of the family. But each family is different due to the varying and ever changing;  social, emotional, religious, political, and relational dynamics.

As the world changes so too does the aging process. Lives last longer as healthcare advances. Internationally and domestically norms are redefined. Some groups are more excepted while others are still disenfranchised. The economy continues to flux and nothing will ever look like it did yesterday. These qualities allow for little to no preparation for the family, whose responsibility is to the well being of parents, aunts/uncles, and grandparents. People, who at one time, were viewed to be very capable to perform as societies standards are now viewed as ineffectual.

When I began writing this entry I intended to touch on the difficulty many adult children face when they are required to step-in for their parents. But, instead I have spoken in a more broad sense of the ever changing world, and the idea that the individual is only a one piece of a very large pie. Also, I have challenged theorists to approach clinical work with older adults through a more definitive, descriptive, and user friendly approach. Older adult issues and specific interaction with family and community are reasonably different from other age groups. As such, I hope that Geriatric social workers and other professionals understand and account for such differences.

Picture courtesy of Zsuzsanna Schreck. View more of her photos at Rocketcat.blogspot