Americans Would Rather Go to the Dentist Than Talk Long-Term Care
More than 60 percent have a negative emotion associated with discussing their long term care needs, according to a
"Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, statistics show that many of us will need to deal with a long term care event either for ourselves or for a loved one, and having the necessary information to make informed decisions is critical," continued McInerney. "
Barriers to Planning
The notion of creating a plan around long term care can often seem like an impossible goal for families who are juggling the stresses of everyday life and allowing barriers to get in their way.
"Individuals in our society often don't like facing the many emotional challenges that aging brings to a family but the stage of frailty is a new prominent stage in our life cycle that needs to be discussed and embraced," said Dr.
Knowing that 70 percent of adults after the age of 65 will need long term care1 motivates the majority (57 percent) of adults to take action for their own long term care needs. Broken down by gender, the data shows that females (64 percent) are significantly more motivated than males (40 percent).
Critical Conversations
While talking about future care is the first step in creating a plan,
Looking at the data by gender, females are less likely to have had a conversation with family or loved ones about planning for their long term care or aging needs. Emotionally, males are more likely to feel peaceful/calm (40 percent) when discussing this topic as compared to females who are more likely to feel anxiety/fear (31 percent) or confusion/overwhelmed (19 percent). Regardless of these feelings, it's critical for families to communicate their long term care wishes.
During Long Term Care Awareness Month,
- Embrace the New Reality. Older-age is a true life-stage and a long one. Just like childhood, adolescence and adulthood, it has three sub-stages (young-old, old and old-old). With medical advances, we are living longer. Knowing it is part of a life-cycle and allows us to embrace it and cope with it sooner.
- Create Learning Conversations with Family. A learning conversation is one where we learn about each other's points of view on the topic. Not a conversation with a correct solution, or with pre-conceived notions about what others are thinking. The idea is to build a plan together by listening to others' ideas and feelings. Not my idea or yours -- but ours -- what is best for our family.
- It's a Process. Remember, there is no right answer or point of view. Gathering perspectives for the plan that is right for you and your family will grow from these conversations but multiple conversations must occur over time. Start with your own thoughts, ideas and feelings then move onto conversations and share your long term care plan with others.
For additional resources about the reality of long term care and the importance of planning to help families start a conversation for the future, please visit: www.longtermcareinsurance.org. The help get the conversation started about
1 2014
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The omnibus consumer study was conducted in collaboration with an independent third party research firm,
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