Home Health & Hospice Week

Your patient pool will continue to grow in coming years, confirms a new government report. In 2010, 40 million people age 65 and over accounted for 13 percent of the total population in the U.S., says the National Institutes of Health. In 2030, the number and proportion of older Americans is expected to grow to 72 million, nearly 20 percent of the U.S. population, says a new NIH report, Older Americans 2012: Key Indicators of Well-Being.

Increased numbers of seniors means an increased demand for home care -- and home care workers, notes an Associated Press article. Low wages and lack of benefits make it hard to attract home health aides.

"We compete with McDonald's, Wendy's and the discount stores," Jennifer Witten, owner of Imani Home Health Co. in Cleveland, told AP. "You can't afford to raise your salaries, yet you want to hire the best people."

Trying to fill jobs will become even more difficult in a few years if the economy improves and job options increase. "The real staffing challenge is 10 years away," David Tramontana with Home Care by Black Stone in Cincinnati told AP. "If we can't pay them more than they get at McDonald's, we're in big trouble."

The report also notes increased hospice usage. "The percentage of older people who received hospice care in the last 30 days of life increased from 19 percent in 1999 to 43 percent in 2009," the NIH points out in a release. The percentage of older Americans who died in hospitals dropped from 49 percent in 1999 to 32 percent in 2009. The percentage who died at home increased from 15 percent in 1999 to 24 percent in 2009.

Obesity is a rising problem for seniors, the report also points out. In 2009-2010, 38 percent of people age 65 and over were obese, compared with 22 percent in 1988-1994. In 2009-2010, 44 percent of people age 65-74 were obese, as were 29 percent of those age 75 and older.

The report is at www.agingstats.gov.