Today is The International Day of Older Persons
Today is the International day of older persons. Singer Eartha Kitt once said, “Aging has a wonderful beauty and we should have respect for that”. In 1982, the World Assembly on Ageing adopted the Vienna International Plan of Action on Ageing initiative which was also endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly later the same year. In 2002, the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing was adopted in the Second World Assembly on Ageing General Assembly and aimed to respond to the societal challenges and opportunities that older persons encounter in the 21st century and to promote the development of a society respecting all ages.
Even though International days existed long before the United Nations (UN), we now rely on the help and the advocacy of the UN to celebrate international days for the purpose of creating awareness to the general public and to incentivize and mobilize political will and resources into helping humanity build a better society. The United Nations creates observances like The International Day of Older Persons to promote international awareness and action on these issues, however, what’s more important, is the role of governments, civil society, the public and private sectors, schools, universities, and more generally, citizens who make an international day a launchpad to raise real and effective awareness.
The Pandemic has disrupted our society and revealed flaws at every level that need to be handled in urgency to ensure that older people can fulfill their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy environment. For this reason, the UN has declared The United Nations Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030). The UN also adopted the theme “Digital Equity for All Ages” for the year 2021 affirming that older persons need to have access and meaningful participation in the digital world.
For the same reason, we are celebrating this special day at Optical Forum in our own way: exchanging tips and ideas among eye care professionals on how each one of us treats older persons in his practice, on this particular day and every day of the year?
What measures each one of us is taking to ensure digital equity for all ages?
How many hours do we spend on telehealth creating content for older persons?
How much time do we spend on telemedicine providing care for older persons?
We invite all Opticians and Optometrists to send us (via email or social media messengers) tips from their strategy to providing care for older patients. All strategies and tips will be shared and featured in the October flipbook issue.
email: feedback@opticalforum.space
instagram: @opticalforumblog
This article was prepared with the help of Optometrist Maria Adra, Optical Forum Editorial Board Member
Miss Maria Adra, Optometrist with more than 9 years experience in clinical optometry, refractive surgery, and ocular procedures; Owner of Adra Eye Care, studied BS Optometry.