April 6th, 2009

Reports the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

The well-intentioned but fragmented system that cares for older adults will be overwhelmed when baby boomers start turning 65 in 2011, said a health official moderating a panel discussion Tuesday in the North Side.

“Tsunami is the word I use,” said Dr. Jules Rosen, chief of geriatric psychiatry services at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. “The need for aging services is going to be a tsunami.”

Rosen said no part of the system, which ranges from senior community centers to nursing homes, is ready for that wave. Tuesday’s discussion will delve into a projected shortage of caregivers for the elderly, he said.

…

The Census Bureau estimates the number of people 65 and older will increase by about 78 percent between 2010 and 2030. Because Pennsylvania has a lot of elderly people, its increase won’t be as dramatic, only about 50 percent.

The Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academy of Sciences, released a report in 2008 that said the increase, when measured from 2005 to 2030, would be closer to 100 percent in the nation.

Read more at the Tribune-Review.