World population growing older due to better care<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Of the approximately 580 million elderly people
\nin the world today, about 355 million live in developing
\ncountries. By 2020, more than 1,000 million people aged 60 years
\nand older will be living in the world. More than 700 million of
\nthem will be in developing countries out of which 29 million will
\nbe in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
In developing countries, population aging is occurring more
\nrapidly because of a rapid decline in fertility and an increasing
\nlife expectancy due to medical interventions based on the use of
\nadvanced technology and drugs. These interventions have provided
\neffective means to treat and prevent many diseases that used to
\nkill people prematurely. Also of importance is the fact that
\npopulation aging in the developing world is accompanied by
\npersistent poverty.<\/p>\n
As such, population aging presents new and serious challenges
\nfor national and international public health. Population aging
\nhas also been projected to aggravate the magnitude of mental
\nhealth problems.<\/p>\n
This will happen because of the increasing life expectancy of
\nthose with mental disorders and an ever growing number of people
\nreaching the age at which the risk of such disorders is high.<\/p>\n
The emerging social and the public health consequences of
\naging, especially in developing countries, need to be taken
\nseriously, in the majority of these countries poverty, as the
\nlack of social security schemes, continuing urbanization and the
\ngrowing participation of women in the workforce all contribute to
\nthe erosion of traditional forms of care for older people.<\/p>\n
Responding to the health challenges five years ago, the World
\nHealth Organization (WHO) launched a program on healthy aging.
\nLiving longer offers many opportunities for personally and
\nsocially fulfilling lives, but it also presents individual and
\nsocietal challenges related to quality of life in old age,
\nincluding independence, social interaction, health care and
\ncommunity involvement. In order to respond to these challenges,
\ncountries have to develop sound and affordable policies that
\nperceive aging as a natural process which continues throughout
\nthe life span. Effective community based programs need to form an
\nintegral part of such healthy aging policies.<\/p>\n
National policies need to aim at cost effective public health
\ninterventions to improve the quality of life in old age and such
\nresults have to be widely shared among countries. The idea is to
\nhave more people reach old age in good health and who are capable
\nof contributing to society, intellectually, spiritually and
\nphysically.<\/p>\n
In recent times, there have been voices raised warning of a
\ngray dawn and of the breakdown of welfare and health systems
\nunder the weight of the increasing number of older people, too
\nold to work and too ill to manage on their own. What the United
\nNations hopes to foster is the notion that older people are a
\ngift to society. But like all gifts, if they are not appreciated
\nand used, they become a burden.<\/p>\n
An international plan of action on aging was adopted by the UN
\nin 1982 to promote training and research as well as the exchange
\nof information and knowledge in order to provide an international
\nbasis for social policies and action. In preparation for the
\ninevitable consequences of a dramatic increase in the elderly
\npopulation, an institute was established in Malta in 1985.<\/p>\n
Eventually what has to be highlighted is not the panic but
\npride of being older citizens. (Mehru Jaffer)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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