Aging in Hong Kong: A Comparative Perspective

✍ Scribed by Jean Woo (auth.), Jean Woo (eds.)

• Publisher: Springer US
• Year: 2013
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 288
• Series: International Perspectives on Aging 5
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

With the longest life expectancy for men and the second longest for women, Hong Kong typifies our planet’s aging population. The daily lives of its older adults closely match the advantages and disadvantages experienced by urban elders in other developed countries. For these reasons, Hong Kong’s elderly serve as a salient guide to older people’s social, psychological, and healthcare needs—concerns of increasing importance as the world grows older.

Aging in Hong Kong examines this emblematic population as a case study specifically in comparison with their counterparts in the West, shedding light on diverse, interrelated currents in the aging experience. Referencing numerous international studies, the book contrasts different health service arrangements and social factors and relates them to a variety of health outcomes. Its wide-ranging coverage documents health and illness trends, reviews age-friendly policy initiatives, relates health literacy to patients’ active role in their own care, and discusses elders as an underserved group in the division of limited health funding and resources. This multiple focus draws readers’ attention to policies that need revisiting or retooling as chapters analyze major life areas including:

• Living environment.
• Retirement and post-retirement employment issues.
• Financial asset management.
• Health literacy regarding aging issues.
• Elder-positive service delivery models.
• Ageism in the prioritization of healthcare.
• End-of-life issues.

By assembling such a wealth of data on its subject, Aging in Hong Kong puts ongoing challenges into clear focus for gerontologists, sociologists, health and cross-cultural psychologists, public health policymakers, and others involved in improving the quality of elders’ lives.

✦ Table of Contents

Front Matter....Pages i-x
Introduction....Pages 1-4
Hong Kong and Other World Cities....Pages 5-30
Living Environment....Pages 31-67
Retirement and Postretirement Issues....Pages 69-91
Elder Financial Asset Management....Pages 93-114
Population Aging: Impact of Common Chronic Diseases on Health and Social Services....Pages 115-156
Health Literacy Regarding Aging Issues....Pages 157-181
The Role of Empowerment in the Management of Chronic Diseases in the Elderly....Pages 183-210
Elder-Friendly Service Delivery Models....Pages 211-234
Quality of Dying....Pages 235-256
Prioritization in Health Care and Ageism....Pages 257-268
Back Matter....Pages 269-280

✦ Subjects

Aging; Public Health; Population Economics; Demography