Loneliness in Older Adults and Its Impact on Mental Health Even in a world where social media and technology are fostering relationships, loneliness still exists and affects one of the most vulnerable populations – the elderly – the most. The hidden battle of loneliness among the elderly often goes unrecognised as we navigate the fast-paced rhythms of modern life, but its impact on mental health is significant and widespread. The Phenomenon of Loneliness in Older Adults Although ageing is a necessary aspect of life, it frequently brings about major changes that might lead to isolation f ..read more

Understanding, Preventing, and Responding to Elder Abuse Elder abuse presents a complex and multifaceted challenge that demands a systematic approach encompassing nuanced identification, proactive prevention, and decisive action. Understanding the intricate nature of this issue and employing sophisticated strategies are pivotal in safeguarding the well-being and dignity of our senior population. Detecting Elder Abuse: Insidious Signs and Complex Expressions Comprehending the subtleties of elder abuse is essential to addressing this widespread problem. There are various kinds of elder abuse bey ..read more

Addressing the Intersection of Age and Disability: Policy Challenges in India Ageing is an inevitable part of life, and it often brings with it an increased likelihood of experiencing disability, both physical and cognitive. According to UNDESA, more than 46 percent of individuals aged 60 and above have disabilities, with over 250 million older people experiencing moderate to severe disability worldwide. Persons with disabilities face numerous challenges, including accessibility barriers, discrimination, limited job opportunities, and as age advances, these hurdles become more complex. A longe ..read more

  A call to address the neglect of the fastest growing demographic category Senior citizens are undoubtedly the fastest growing population segment of our society. With the advancements in healthcare coupled with increasing longevity and reducing mortality rates, the proportion of senior citizens are growing by leaps and bounds. Their number stood at about 100 million, 8% of the overall population, in 2017, and grew to 10.5% in 2022.  This trend of increasing proportion of elderly is likely to continue over decades, and would reach 20.8% in 2050 and 36% by the end of the century. Yet ..read more

  Women, Ageing and Abuse Looking at the title you must be assuming that it would be about violence in the lives of women with maybe the nuance of age added to it. The reaction of men and women to this may vary. If you are a man, you may think I know it all, I have read it all. Anyway, I love and value all the females in my life even those who I know remotely. They are all happy as can be. What more could there be to it? So, why spend 10 minutes on this. If you are a woman, you probably live it so what is there to read? Let me make an effort to entice you to read this piece. We all know t ..read more

  Longing for Home… Home…..it’s a late Friday evening and today nostalgia was hitting hard. As I sat in my office, wrapping up some work at the end of the day, with most of my colleagues, now heading home to spend time with their families, I felt a deep longing for mine. A colleague of mine told me on her way out, that coming Monday was ‘International Day of Families’ and here I was far away from mine.  Incidentally, I work in the line of agecare & elderly. Maybe that triggered the deep sense of ‘missing’ I was feeling and I was transported back in time. I could hear a faint dist ..read more

  Bringing Digital Independence & Empowerment to Senior Citizens   On May 11, across the country we mark ‘National Technology Day’ to celebrate the incredible achievements being made in the field of science and technology in India. One of the areas where the country is progressing in leaps and bounds and making the world sit up and take notice is digital technology. The digital wave is radically changing the way in which the society connects as a community, the way it consumes information, entertainment and the way it accesses key services.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ind ..read more

  Why the post-pandemic retiree is choosing freedom over family   The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the toughest tests we have faced as a collective but the most severely impacted were senior citizens. As the most vulnerable segment of the population, they lived under virtual curfew for months, some even for years. All their daily activities such as buying their daily requirements of food and medicines, meeting relatives and friends living, not socialize, or visiting places of worship, etc. were brought to a halt and every day was filled with uncertainty, despondency and isolation. Th ..read more

  Gifting Sight to Disadvantaged Elders with HelpAge India’s ‘Aankhon Ka Tara’ Campaign   Imagine a health problem which has causes that are 90% treatable, the solution is widely available and cost effective, and yet millions suffer and struggle on daily basis. Avoidable blindness/visual impairment is a significant public health problem in India. This is particularly serious in the age group of 50 plus, where 1 in 4 are visually impaired (varying degree of severity). This age group has 5X risk compared to adult population in general. As per the ‘National Blindness ..read more

  Imagine, you’re in the year 1995, back when phones had keypads where you had to press the same key thrice to type a particular letter. You wake up to 122 messages out of which 100 are from the telecom companies and 22 are from your contacts. You can only reply to one message at a time. There was no WhatsApp, Instagram or Facebook. Now, imagine pressing the same set of keys multiple times because you have to reply to all 22 messages from friends and family separately. Feels like a lot of work, doesn’t it?    Now, let’s take this one step further. What if you don’t have the know ..read more