Journey to good care for elderly now beginning
THE EDITOR: Social Development Minister, Mr Anthony Roberts appears to be one of the few in public office that is actually doing his job. He has begun preliminary work on a resolution for the perennial scourge of vagrancy and is also currently engaged in tasks to procure a better quality life for citizens in their twilight years. These are two challenging and tedious issues that no one prior to Mr Roberts has seen fit to seriously undertake. However, I seek to give precedence to the plight of the elderly having recently read where Roberts’ Ministry together with the Soroptimist International of Port-of-Spain launched the Port-of-Spain Senior Centre. This institution is the first of its kind in TT and the public is assured that four more will follow. Roberts asserts that the centres will afford physical, social and mental stimulation for aging folks, for which the present population stands at 130,000 and projected to reach 260,000 by 2020. Agreeably, the appropriate legislation, systems, centres, healthcare and pensions must be established and maintained to ensure that such a significant and vulnerable part of the populace is adequately cared for. I implore Minister Roberts to champion an incentive where seniors and/or their guardians can apply for financial assistance that will allow adequate care. This will involve a social worker conducting an assessment of the senior’s finances weighed against his/her specific needs and well-being. Once approved and disbursement of funds on a monthly basis begins, routine follow-ups must be made by officials to ensure that the money is being used for its intended purpose. This function will also create more jobs in the Social Development Ministry. DEXTER RIGSBY Mt Lambert
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"Journey to good care for elderly now beginning"