Title Foisted upon the government? : state responsibilities, family obligations, and the care of the dependent aged in late nineteenth-century Ontario / Edgar-AndrØ̧e Montigny

Published Montreal, Que. : McGill-Queen's University Press, ©1997

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Description 1 online resource (xii, 220 pages) : illustrations Series McGill-Queen's/Hannah Institute studies in the history of medicine, health and society ; 6 McGill-Queen's/Hannah Institute studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; 6. Contents 1. Population Aging, Old Age Dependency, and Public Policy -- 2. Home and Family: A Demographic Profile of the Aged in Nineteenth-Century Ontario: Brockville, 1851-1901 -- 3. Dependency, Employment, and Need among Ontario's Aged: Perception and Reality -- 4. Families, Neighbours, and Communities: Local Support Systems for the Aged Poor in Nineteenth-Century Ontario -- 5. Government Policy towards the Dependent Aged in Ontario: Institutions and the Ideal Family -- 6. Institutions and the Impact of Public Policy on the Aged: The Elderly Patients of Rockwood Asylum, 1866-1906 -- 7. Long-Term-Care Reform and Family Obligations in Ontario in the 1990s Summary While government officials in the 1890s claimed that forcing families to take responsibility for caring for the aged was in the interest of the elderly, Edgar-Andre Montigny reveals that government policy had more to do with saving money than a desire to serve the aged. He provides a harsh critique of Ontario government policies toward the elderly and their families at the end of the nineteenth century and highlights similarities between what happened in the 1890s and current policy reforms in the area of long-term care Montigny argues that government played a central role in determining how society viewed the elderly and family obligations to them. Using census data, municipal records, and institutional case files, he demonstrates that the government created and promoted an image of the aged population that bore little resemblance to reality and manipulated the concept of family obligations to justify policies to reduce social-welfare costs. The effect of these policies, passed in the name of helping the elderly and their families, was almost universally negative. By dispelling the myths that continue to influence public policy concerning the aged, Montigny provides a useful warning of the negative consequences of policies that are enacted to cut costs rather than to serve the population they are supposed to help Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 195-215) and index Notes English Print version record Subject Older people -- Government policy -- Ontario -- History -- 19th century Older people -- Home care -- Government policy -- Ontario -- History -- 19th century Older people -- Ontario -- Social conditions Health Services for the Aged -- history Long-Term Care -- history Health Policy -- history FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS -- Abuse -- Elder Abuse. FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS -- Eldercare. SOCIAL SCIENCE -- Gerontology. Older people -- Government policy Older people -- Social conditions SUBJECT Ontario https://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/D009864 Subject Ontario Genre/Form Electronic books History Form Electronic book LC no. 97900352 ISBN 9780773566637 0773566635 1282854534 9781282854536 9786612854538 6612854537

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