Older Volunteers: A Precious Resource Under Pressure

Abstract

ABSTRACTDrawing on the literature on the extensive investment older adults make in volunteering, and on the findings of a study of 19 not-for-profit agencies that rely heavily on older adults to provide a variety of community services, this paper identifies several significant changes in the character of the clients who are served by these volunteers and in government health policies affecting the delivery of community services. The paper concludes with suggestions for research and policy development aimed to optimize the contribution which older volunteers make to society and reciprocally, the contribution that volunteering makes to the health and well-being of older adults.