Healthcare, social services and travel safety | Top elderly concerns

The Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) last Friday concluded its final public briefing session for the consultation on establishing a Support System for the Aged in the second quarter of next year. Having drafted and presented the framework of the system and received the community’s feedback, the bureau’s president Mr. Iong Kong Io noted that issues of medical and social services, as well as travel safety, have topped the list of public concerns regarding the construction of a comprehensive system.
On the last public session held at the Kiang Wu Hospital, participants highlighted several existing issues troubling elderly residents, including the insufficient medical care and services in elderly care facilities, inadequate guidance for domestic caregivers, a lack of attention to elderly people living alone, and barriers preventing retired workers from accessing their right to social participation.
Lawmaker Chan Iek Lap from the medical sector – amongst other participants – noted that nursing staff at elderly care homes often lack full medical knowledge, resulting in repeated or unnecessary hospital trips for the aged residents. He thus urged the government to better regulate the homes in order to improve the overall quality of service.
Other participants suggested that the authorities should not place the pressure of looking after the elderly sorely on medical institutions and care homes, but should promote a caring society and offer specialized training courses for families and domestic helpers to learn how to care for elderly family members.
Iong responded that the authorities are paying great attention to these areas and that the research group would carefully analyze the opinions and suggestions. He pledged to constantly optimize future action plans to address Macau’s rapidly aging society, adding that specific work and policies would be implemented shortly after the system has been officially set up.
He stressed that “ten years [is] not a short period, but the government will set the plans in motion as soon as possible.” He added that a supervisory system would be established for a comprehensive annual review of the policy implementation, which will include conclusions, assessments and specific plans for future services.
“The action plan of elderly services jointly proposed by 13 departments basically attends to senior citizens’ demands in different aspects, which cover healthcare, social security, protection of rights, social participation, and living environment. Most elderly citizens that participated in the briefing sessions expressed approval of the framework,” he told the media, adding that residents can still submit opinions during the consultation period, which ends on September 15.