MALTA: ‘Ageing population poses great challenges on health services’

. ST. JULIANS, Malta / The Malta Independent / February 17, 2009 By 2015, the number of persons aged over 65 years in Malta will reach 77,000 while in the year 2050 the number of elderly persons over 65 years will exceed 101,000, Mario Galea, parliamentary secretary for the elderly and community care, yesterday told the opening of an international training programme in social gerontology. People are indeed living longer with a life expectancy of 77 years for males and 81 years for females, he said. An ageing population will trigger huge challenges. Elderly people need costly health care services because “it is not simply a matter of adding years to life but adding life to years,” he said. In real terms, it also means that large numbers of elderly persons need costly operations such as open heart surgery, angioplasty, knee and hip replacement, cataract operations and so many other surgical interventions. This is only fair because such interventions will not only result in longevity but most importantly they will also improve the quality of life of elderly persons. Another example is the incidence of Alzheimer and dementia which is more prevalent among the elderly. In Europe it is estimated that there are over six million people suffering from Alzheimer and dementia whereas in Malta there are over 4,000 people suffering from dementia, and the number is on the increase. The demand for long-term beds is also on the increase. “At the moment in Malta we have approximately 4,000 long term care beds for the elderly (government/Church/ private). According to recent estimates we have concluded that we need to increase the number of long term care beds by at least 150 beds a year, which is a lot by our standards. In Malta like the rest of Europe there is a shortage of nurses. So the real challenge is of course to find the staff for these extra beds.” The way forward is to try and prolong as much as possible the stay of the elderly in the community. At the end of the day, you can build the most comfortable wards, the most luxurious homes for the elderly but ultimately there is no better place for the elderly person than his home, near his family and loved ones. Despite all the community care one can possibly provide there comes a time when the elderly person living in the community becomes dependent and will request long term care. So there is no doubt that an ageing population like ours poses great challenges on our health care services as well on our social security system. “But there are advantages too. The increasing number of elderly persons should also be perceived as a potential resource which needs to be tapped,” Mr Galea said. “At this point allow me to present to you another issue which you might want to discuss in your deliberations – the relevance or irrelevance of chronological age. Every country has a yardstick to administer and determine the onset of old age. However, improvements in medicine have contributed to better health across the human life course. Better health standards have thus improved the traditional outlook of old age. People get old not when the state decides to label them as an elderly person but when they can no longer be independent in their daily activities of living and in most of the cases this is not at the age of 60 or 65 but much later on in life.” In this regard, because people are living longer and healthier, in Malta the retirement age is gradually being raised to 65 years. Also, a person reaching retirement age can continue to work and derive any earnings from such work and at the same time still receives his or her social security pension. “In conclusion I do acknowledge that trying to understand and tackle the implications of mass longevity is a big and complex challenge in itself. And a very difficult one too! The task ahead of you is an enormous one because this phenomenon is posing unique and unprecedented political, economic and social challenges to our world. So I fully understand that the following days will be tough and challenging for you all. “A famous author once wrote that ‘if you choose a path with no obstacles it probably doesn’t lead anywhere’. In this regard I am convinced that you are indeed on the right track.” © Standard Publications Ltd 2004