The Health Ministry and General Office for Population- Family Planning have launched an online photo competition on the role of senior citizens in response to International Day for Old Persons.
An ageing population is posing mounting challenges to providing care for elderly people in Vietnam. However, in a country where most families look after old parents in their own homes, the idea of a ‘nursing home’ or geriatric centre remains an alien concept.
Vietnam is advised to quickly develop the model of family doctors, as well as improve the capability of hospitals and medical centres that specialise in taking care of the elderly, in order to meet increasing demand from senior citizens.
The nation’s population policy must be integrated with other socio-economic factors including national defence and security to ensure rapid and sustainable development, experts said at a meeting in Hanoi on November 29.
The General Office for Population and Family Planning under the Ministry of Health on April 12 launched a Japanese-funded project to provide preventive health care services to the elderly to cope with population aging in Vietnam.