Pastoral care must address spiritual needs of the elderly

For the immediate future, the attention and resources of healthcare will be focused on the increasing number of elderly individuals. But the American population is ill-prepared to handle the psychosocial aspects of this enormous population shift. Too often this country's mind-set toward the elderly is exemplified by its stereotypes. The ramifications of these biases are ethical, political, social, religious, and economic. Pastoral care should identify and create avenues to address the spiritual needs of the elderly, which can be categorized under three major areas: 1. The need to find a meaning and purpose to life 2. The need to feel a sense of belonging and love 3. The need to find reconciliation with God and the human community One tool to address these needs is the "life review", whose fundamental operational principle is that memory confers identity. The pastoral care professional identifies, interprets, and probes the remembrances and reminiscences of the elderly to help them find understanding and hope in the waning days of life.