With all of us baby boomers heading into old age there is one field that has a bright future: taking care of old bodies. This article (
http://bit.ly/qCPLF7) outlines the need for home health aides and nursing home aides. Lots of old people for the next 30 or 40 years will need to be spoon-fed, have their diapers changed (toileting), be bathed, and lifted in and out of wheelchairs -- all without going nuts. Having a dad with Alzheimer's and a mother and mother-in-law with deep dementia, I've been exposed to a lot of this. All I can say is when I need it I want Filipinos. They're gentle and patient. Most people who do this for long burn out or become really indifferent.
In Japan they're trying to do this sort of work with robots. I read awhile ago that so far it's not going well. The old folks don't like robots no matter how well they simulate a smile. "Get your claws off me, you damn dirty robot!"
