Our View: Urgent action needed for elderly care

Various issues relating to pensioners have been pushed to the fore recently, mainly due to the deaths of several elderly people from heatstroke.

Leaving aside that according to the Lancet in 2021, for every older person who dies from heat-related causes globally, nine die as a result of health conditions brought on by the cold but this generally slips by under the public’s radar as it does not generate the same kinds of headlines.

This past week, organisations representing the elderly have pointed out that even with the extended electricity subsidy, the cost of keeping cool or warm for the elderly is still unaffordable.

At the same time, the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO) has warned that the absence of adequate infrastructure for elderly care could compromise the effective functioning of the healthcare system.

It highlighted the lack of specialised care facilities, especially for the elderly, who cannot return home after hospital treatment.

This is currently hampering the operation of hospitals around the island. Families, the HIO said, either cannot or refuse to transfer them to other facilities, resulting in unnecessary occupancy of hospital beds and delaying the admission and treatment of other patients.

This is indeed a problem. Perhaps the elderly and their families find that the hospital is a more comfortable and safer environment for their older relatives in comparison with their own homes.

We are still waiting – since 2019 – for the infamous ‘red button’ bracelets where the elderly can signal for help. This could help free up more hospital beds.

There is a general tendency in Cyprus to shrug off the needs of the elderly “because they’re just old and sick people”.  Unless they are caring for an elderly relative, most tend to not think much about the difficulties older people endure when it comes to low pensions, subpar care facilities, getting around on an inadequate bus system, the cost of living, the cost of home help and technologies they will probably never be able to master.

Indeed, Ombudswoman Maria Stylianou pointed this out recently when she spoke about the ‘digital divide’. She said elderly people especially are not tech-savvy and that their physical capabilities are also likely to deteriorate over time such as diminishing eyesight and arthritis. Also, they are unable to keep up with ever-changing technology and complex information and instructions that make it hard for them to use apps and devices to access government services.

She quite rightly suggested that at least a helpline or an office be set up where they could get practical assistance to complete e-government forms.

The Third Age Observatory is calling for the creation of a deputy ministry that would explicitly deal with the issues of the elderly.  Although we are now drowning in deputy ministries, this would not be a bad idea.

According to government data, the over 65s constituted 26.7 per cent of the population in 2022. This will rise to 32 per cent in just five years and by 2060 over 51 per cent of people in Cyprus will be aged over 65.  Time to get moving.