SOCW 6210 Week 6 discussion post responses. Respond to the colleagues posts in one of the following ways: · From a strength's perspective, critique your colleague's approach to addressing Francine's case. Provide support for your critique. · Critique your colleague's strategy for applying knowledge of the aging process to work with older clients. Discuss how cultural, ethnic, and societal influences might affect the application of this strategy. · At least one reference and citation is required in each post. SR’s post states the following:Top of Form As a group, LGBT older adults experience unique economic and health disparities. LGBT older adults may disproportionately be affected by poverty and physical and mental health conditions due to a lifetime of unique stressors associated with being a minority and may be more vulnerable to neglect and mistreatment in aging care facilities (American, 2019). In the case of Francine (Plummer, 2014) she is a 70-year-old Catholic woman, who personally identifies as a lesbian. She never felt comfortable actually “coming out” due to the environment she grew up in. Both in the era, she grew up in and the strict Catholic belief she was raised in is against homosexual nature she felt it wasn’t appropriate to discuss. As she got older and experienced the loss of her partner, she felt those who cared about her felt she should not mourn her loss so hard. It could have been due to her never admitting who her partner really was, or the common mindset of those around her. It could affect how she viewed her life and what she should do as an older adult in her sexual life. Environmental factors influence the aging process. Being physically and mentally active tends to slow down the aging process. Inactivity speeds it up. A positive outlook (positive thinking) tends to slow down the aging process. Insecurity, the lack of someone to talk to, negative thinking, and being in a strange environment tend to accelerate the aging process (Zastrow, 2016). In Francine’s case, the loss of her loved one and retirement has affected her outlook. She feels sad and isolated, it has taken its toll and that can progress the effects of ages. Once she gained a support system she was able to increase her activity and her mental stability changed. As a worker, I would use the understanding that environmental factors and personal views can affect a client and manifest as an aging process. I would help Francine by using cognitive reasoning to help her accept her life and make changes that make her happy. While morning her loved one is appropriate, helping herself is as well. The notion that there is a general intellectual decline in old age is largely incorrect. Most intellectual abilities hold up well with age. While older people show a decline in performance on IQ tests, their actual intellectual competence may not be declining (Zastrow, 2016). A strategy I might use in applying my knowledge of the aging process in social work practice.

1. SOCW 6210 Week 6 discussion post responses.
Respond to the colleagues posts in one of the following ways:
· From a strength's perspective, critique your colleague's
approach to addressing Francine's case. Provide support for
your critique.
· Critique your colleague's strategy for applying knowledge of
the aging process to work with older clients. Discuss how
cultural, ethnic, and societal influences might affect the
application of this strategy.
· At least one reference and citation is required in each post.
SR’s post states the following:Top of Form
As a group, LGBT older adults experience unique economic and
health disparities. LGBT older adults may disproportionately be
affected by poverty and physical and mental health conditions
due to a lifetime of unique stressors associated with being a
minority and may be more vulnerable to neglect and
mistreatment in aging care facilities (American, 2019). In the
case of Francine (Plummer, 2014) she is a 70-year-old Catholic
woman, who personally identifies as a lesbian. She never felt
comfortable actually “coming out” due to the environment she
grew up in. Both in the era, she grew up in and the strict
Catholic belief she was raised in is against homosexual nature
she felt it wasn’t appropriate to discuss. As she got older and
experienced the loss of her partner, she felt those who cared
about her felt she should not mourn her loss so hard. It could
have been due to her never admitting who her partner really
was, or the common mindset of those around her. It could affect
how she viewed her life and what she should do as an older
adult in her sexual life.
Environmental factors influence the aging process. Being
physically and mentally active tends to slow down the aging

2. process. Inactivity speeds it up. A positive outlook (positive
thinking) tends to slow down the aging process. Insecurity, the
lack of someone to talk to, negative thinking, and being in a
strange environment tend to accelerate the aging process
(Zastrow, 2016). In Francine’s case, the loss of her loved one
and retirement has affected her outlook. She feels sad and
isolated, it has taken its toll and that can progress the effects of
ages. Once she gained a support system she was able to increase
her activity and her mental stability changed.
As a worker, I would use the understanding that environmental
factors and personal views can affect a client and manifest as an
aging process. I would help Francine by using cognitive
reasoning to help her accept her life and make changes that
make her happy. While morning her loved one is appropriate,
helping herself is as well.
The notion that there is a general intellectual decline in old age
is largely incorrect. Most intellectual abilities hold up well with
age. While older people show a decline in performance on IQ
tests, their actual intellectual competence may not be declining
(Zastrow, 2016). A strategy I might use in applying my
knowledge of the aging process in social work practice with
older clients would be to not assume that clients are any
different from other clients. Because a person is biologically
considered in the late adulthood category does not mean that
they are any different mentally that they were 40 years ago.
Allowing the client to express themselves and what their goals
are is another strategy I would use. Letting the client express
themselves would give a better concept of how to approach
clients to care plan.
References
American Psychological Association (2019). Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, and Transgender Aging. Retrieved
from https://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/resources/aging

3. Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014).
Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore, MD:
Laureate International Universities Publishing. Working With
the Aging: The Case of Francine. Retrieved
from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781624580062
/cfi/6/56!/4/2/[email protected]:0
Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding
human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston,
MA: Cengage Learning. Chapter 14, Biological Aspects of Later
Adulthood. Retrieved
from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781337342063
/cfi/6/40!/4/12/4/16/10/[email protected]:100
CG’s Post states the following
"Aging is an individual process that occurs at different rates in
different people, and sociopsychological factors may retard or
accelerate the physiological changes" (Zastrow & Kirst-
Ashman,2016). In the case of Francine, her lack of support
influenced her aging process. At the age of 70 years old,
Francine is dealing with depressing, loneliness, and a possible
alcohol relapse after the death of her partner (Plummer,
Makris & Brocksen, 2014). Francine's family and friends are
unaware of her romantic relationship with her partner,
therefore, no one understood the impact the death of her partner
had on Francine. As a social worker helping Francine, the best
way to assist Francine is to access her unhealthy patterns she is
using to cope with the death of her partner. An additional
strategy, I would recommend to assist Francine is the Strength
based approach. "Francine came to counseling with several
considerable strengths, including a capacity to form intimate
relationships, a successful work history, a history of having
maintained her sobriety in the past for many years, as well as

4. insight into the factors that had contributed to her current
difficulties (Plummer, Makris & Brocksen, 2014). As a social
worker, it is best to build rapport with clients in order to
discover the clients. With this method, the process of the
rapport is important in order to locate the most beneficial goals
with this particular client.
References:
Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding
human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston,
MA: Cengage Learning.
Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.).
(2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore,
MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital
Source e-reader].
AS’s post states the following:
The process of aging involves physical changes that take place
when an individual reaches a later adulthood. In the case of
Francine, a 70 year old retired librarian, that is seeking
counseling to address several concerns. Francine reports
experiencing isolation and expressed feelings of loneliness after
losing her partner of 30 years (Plummer, Makris & Brocksen,
2014). The existing factors that contribute to Francine’s lack of
social and physical engagement may considerably impact and
“accelerate” her aging process (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman,
2016). In working with Francine, I would apply my knowledge
of the aging process by implementing empowering strategies
that promotes positive self-identity. Empowering Francine to
feel free within, acknowledgement of her own sexual orientation
is essential for effective treatment. An additional strategy I
might apply as a social worker when working with older
individuals in general would be to change society’s perception

5. of aging and “emphasize the positive aspects” (Nelson, 2016)
through education. As a social worker I would advocate to
change the stigma’s and negative stereotypes associated with
growing older by promoting positive images through
commercials and other sources of social media. I would utilize
this strategy to help improve the quality of life in older adults.
Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding
human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston,
MA: Cengage Learning.
Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014).
Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore, MD:
Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-
reader].
Nelson, T. D. (2016). Promoting healthy aging by confronting
ageism. American Psychologist, 71(4), 276–282.
Our lecture discussion this week asked you to identify current
problems that you might have observed or experienced in the
U.S. health system. Choose at least two of these problems and
describe how you see it unfolding in our current health
landscape. What concerns you most? What do you think would
change or help address the issue? What questions do you still
have that we should consider as we continue the discussion in
this course?
250 words, use quotes, data, and external evidence to support
your statements. All sources should be appropriately cited using
APA citations. Please read the syllabus policy for guidance on
citation style and academic integrity.