After a briefing on dementia prevention and care by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) at today's Cabinet meeting, Premier Mao Chi-kuo directed the ministry to map out a comprehensive policy white paper based on the concepts of holistic health care.
Meanwhile, the MOHW must work to integrate public- and private-sector resources and institute a friendly environment to help senior citizens to delay aging and loss of capabilities, sustain health and energy, and continue to contribute to society while enjoying a quality lifestyle, the premier instructed.
Mao also urged the MOHW and the Ministry of Labor to conduct joint research on amending regulations for evaluating the employment of foreign caretakers for elderly dementia patients, in order to reduce inconvenience for citizens by simplifying the application process.
More than 220,000 people in Taiwan suffer from dementia, and even though the island has a lower dementia rate than other advanced countries, the nation's population is rapidly becoming a super-aged society, the premier pointed out. The elderly are forecast to surpass 20 percent of the total population in 2025. The impacts of that phenomenon on families and society are enormous, he warned.
Hence, in addition to injecting resources to take care of the disadvantaged, the MOHW, with forward-looking vision and a proactive attitude, should formulate a holistic health care white paper and integrate public- and private-sector resources to institute an elderly-friendly environment, Mao instructed.
Aside from the MOHW-formulated National 10-year Long-term Care Plan to look after the 16 percent of elderly who are relatively disadvantaged, the ministry in September this year mapped out the Taiwan Dementia Policy: A Framework for Prevention and Care to enhance care services, medical treatment, health care and community living quality for both bed-ridden elderly and dementia patients, the premier pointed out.
Moreover, the MOHW has continued to incorporate related agencies and private-sector resources to provide convenient, timely and effective services from the standpoint of patients and families in order to ensure better care.
According to ministry officials, the focal points in promoting and implementing the Taiwan Dementia Policy are as follows:
- Community health promotion and disease prevention.
- Building comprehensive dementia-care networks in communities.
- Family caretaker services.
- Raising the public's awareness and strengthening front-line services.
Community health promotion and disease prevention covers both community health promotional networks and the establishment of elderly-friendly institutions and cities, the officials pointed out. The MOHW will help the public understand dementia by holding health promotion activities for elderly in the 1,964 community care stations and offering free preventive health services for senior citizens once a year. As for establishing elderly-friendly institutions and cities, 94 hospitals have been accredited and 22 counties and cities are speedily working toward this goal in full force, which will benefit an estimated 2.74 million seniors.