Category: Asia
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Open Your Eyes: A Journey from Darkness to Sight
Open Your Eyes is a recently produced documentary on the impact of cataract surgery in Nepal. The film shows the transformation of health-related quality of life for older adults with access to medical care. In the film, Manisara and Durga make the long journey to get cataract surgery. Both husband…
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One Child: The Story of China’s Most Radical Experiment
One Child: The Story of China’s Most Radical Experiment by Mei Fong presents a compelling analysis of the impact of China’s “One-Child Policy” on older adults. The one-child policy, a compelling story of population control for economic growth, has long term implications that are only now apparent. Fong describes the…
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Japan Confronts Crime Wave With Aging Population
“It wasn’t great to get caught, but I just didn’t give a damn…” Fumio Kageyama A crime wave among older people is underway in the world’s greyest nation. Just last year in Japan, the number of criminals over 65 overtook the number of teenage criminals for the first time since…
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The Not-so-Novel Concept of Elderly Homes in Asia
Old age homes are no longer a taboo! The waiting lists of nursing homes in Korea are at three times their capacity and the number of elder care homes in Nanjing, China has increased from 27 in 1990 and 52 in 2000 to 148 in 2009! In Asia, people are…
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Elderly Refugees: The Experiences of Cambodian populations under the Khmer Rouge
War, natural disaster and fear of persecution often result in the tragic displacement of people far away from their homes. These people, refugees, live in uncertainty and under significant psychological and physical stress. Among these refugees are the elderly who are a particularly vulnerable group. Aging is not limited to…
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India is Diabetes Capital of the World
P Pushpam, a resident of Chennai, India, was denied her job appointment with the Indian Railways on the grounds that she was a chronic diabetic. The court ruled in her favor and pointed out the impracticality of discriminating against people suffering from diabetes in a country that has over 40 million…
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Healthcare and Aging in the UAE
“They think they are elderly and it is a normal consequence of ageing to be in bed,” says Dr Al Suwaidi. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a small country in the Middle East, nestled between Saudi Arabia to the West, Oman to the East and Iran to the North.…
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How Robot Technology is Caring for the Elderly
Japan faces a rapidly aging population. As more and more of the population greys, fewer and fewer young people are available to care for the elderly. There is a particular shortage of health care workers who work with the elderly therefore the demand for elderly health care is not being…
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Why China Needs More Skilled Health Workers for the Aging Population
China’s workforce is aging. Of special relevance here, and a pressing issue for the country, is the aging of its healthcare workforce. These include China’s barefoot doctors who are rapidly aging. Barefoot doctors are farmers who receive basic and minimal medical training and work as health care providers in the…