Understanding the health needs of older people

Understanding the health needs of older people from their perspective is a book about the voice of the seniors in developing countries. The book brings out the views, opinions and feelings of the older people about their health in the process of caring for grand children and other family members amidst challenges of poverty, HIV and AIDs. The book addresses the meaning of health and illness as experienced by the seniors, their coping mechanisms and support they receive. The reader will see that older people define health and illness in terms of physical, social, economic, mental and spiritual wellbeing. Academics, social researchers, students and practitioners in the fields of gerontology and geriatrics; social work; medicine; caring; and other social sciences will find this book invaluable. The book is the result of research among the older people in Zambia with academic and ethical support from the University of Southampton-UK, University of Zambia, Ministry of Health, and ERES Converge.