KUALA LUMPUR: The world’s population is ageing. Society and family units need to embrace this fact and prepare for the changes that come with the global demographic shift.
“We need to accept ageing and the growing population of elderly people as a natural and neutral process and treat the old with dignity,” Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital deputy superintendent Dr Loh Ching-hui (pix) said.
“Let them (the seniors) move around and do things such as volunteer work, and continue to experience and learn new things,” he added.
As head of the Department of Ageing and Community Health, he told theSun that he has done research on how to address healthy ageing.
“Accept the elderly and provide them with experiences to learn and grow so they develop a sense of dignity. So, they can continue to live and have a more positive mindset.”
Loh said seniors stricken with disease can continue to live a happy life if they are involved in physical activity, doing volunteer or charity work or activities that stimulate the brain.
He cited recycling work at the Tzu Chi Foundation in Taiwan that keeps the elderly active and stimulate their brain as they sort out plastic that are recyclable.
According to Loh, in Taiwan, the average lifespan of a person who lives a life of dependency and is bedridden or diseased is about eight years but he felt this time frame should be shortened as “the elderly should not experience any form of suffering in their last years,” said the believer of the adage ‘Live long, Die quickly’.
He brought up loneliness, something the elderly will need to deal with as seniors living by themselves will be the norm.
“The statistics of elderly living alone in the city in Taiwan is very high, hence, we often encourage them to engage in work, volunteer work or activities that involve other senior people in the community.”
He said this will encourage the old to bond and develop a caring attitude and look out for one another.
Loh encourages those in their twilight years to be capable and independent as this will spur them to persevere, develop and advance.
“Don’t always wait for things, wait for your meals and wait for the time to die, instead look for something new to learn and keep active minds and be young at heart.”
He said Asians tend to have a more pessimistic view about ageing and urged that we consider “conscientious ageing”.
“We should look at ageing from the point that one has accumulated wisdom over the years and has experienced more of life than a younger person, hence, the young can learn from the old, more than from a book.”
With ageing a global phenomenon, Loh recommends policies be put in place for the capable, who want to work and can contribute to society.
