h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I hope that at least some of the political partices will have the wisdom to invite some of us "oldies" to their conferences.

We would dispute quite a lot of their findings I am sure.

Apparently one oldie in Russia who is 130, drinks a glass of vodka a day.

Dare I say that I do not believe it. !!

CME
Alsoran80 nearly 82

10/III/2010 7.43 GMT

!

Hi Christiane

I think the main parties are very worried about what they call 'the grey vote', and want to tap in to it. I found many BBC News stories about the phenomenon (just type 'grey vote' into the search bar at the top of the screen).

This one is typical: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4251971.stm

Icy, that story is from 2005, and nothing has changed, in fact things are worse. The politicians are milking us for every penny, and treating many OAPs like trash. It is time the 'grey vote' stood up to be counted, instead of rolling over and playing dead which is what the govt. would like.

Websailor

In the United States, there's an organization called AARP, which is very vocal and protective. I'm sorry that the U.K. doesn't have an equivalent group. I would have thought that the country's best-known senior citizen, the Queen, would be leading the charge.

Hello Christiane

I knew that Dame Joan Bakewell is the govement's champion of the elderly as well as Sir Michael Parkinson as the dignity ambassador.

The Late Jack Jones was the vice-president of Age Concern and chairman of the National Pensioners’ Convention http://www.npcuk.org/.

Katrine

As Katrine says there are spokesmen and women and organisations but they don't seem to have the clout to get anything done.

Websailor

What is it that needs to get done?

Where do I start Proper pensions, better medical care, better home care, better homes for those who cannot care for themselves, respect for those who have given much of their lives to the service of others, respect for age, experience and infirmity.

I am sure other people can add to the list, but the 'grey vote' has been trampled on for far too long.

Websailor

Not over here. The AARP is one of the most powerful lobbies in the States. That's one of the reasons the conservatives are stumbling over their selves trying to decry "socialized medicine" as the end of the world as we know it while they try to protect Medicare (socialized medicine for the elderly).

Is there something I'm missing, Websailor? Respect is not usually something that costs much. How are the in the U.K. not getting the respect they deserve?

I'd like to know, because I serve many elderly library patrons, and have many elderly neighbors who rely on services that our city provides. In my area, we have curb cuts that make it easy for people in wheelchairs to get around. We have mandatory ramps or elevators that make mobility easier. The City provides vans to take seniors places--all they have to do is pick up the phone and request it. People over 60 get reduced rates on movie tickets and at many restaurants. People over 62 get huge reductions in the fares that they pay on buses and subway trains. Every bus is equipped with hydraulic lifts to get people in wheelchairs on and off the bus. Medicare pays for up to 100 days in a rehab hospital for frail elders who have had surgery. (My mother has benefitted from this.) Our state has a program that provides home health aids so frail elders can continue living in their own homes rather than go to nursing homes. If you're willing to pay for these aids out of your own pocket, there are social agencies that will make the arrangements.

Do seniors in the U.K. have any of these benefits? All of them? None of them? I'm curious to know how far you need to come. Good luck to you

There are various benefits available but the paperwork puts people off applying. Very little is given automatically, it has to be applied for and people in the 70s and 80s find it demeaning to have to ask for their entitlements. Many old people are marooned in their own homes, looked after by overworked carers for which they have to pay if they have some money, and those that don't are often not treated with the respect they deserve.

Hospital and home care leaves an awful lot to be desired, some areas being better than others. Many old people's homes are being closed with very old people being shunted around against their will, and against the wishes of their relatives.

Yes, I agree respect costs little, but targets are all that seem to matter, and staff in hospitals and homes are pressured and overworked to the point where they have little time or patience to do the job they trained for and low morale makes matters worse. Tired and stressed staff cannot do their best in any profession.

Before any of our s here jump on me, I am not blaming the professionals, I am blaming government targets, cutbacks and interference which make the jobs of the caring professions something of a nightmare. Unfortunately it is often the elderly and infirm who take the brunt of the cuts.

There is no doubt that in specialist areas we have some of the best treatment in the world, hampered by politicians who haven't a clue.

Websailor

I am so sorry to hear about that. I expect that there's some variation depending on the attitudes and circumstances of individual families. I have a sister-in-law who is an irresistible force. No barrier can stand in her way for long.

Your sister-in-law should be in government.

She works for a state university, so in a way she is.

We have a few here too, but we could do with more Paulh

Websailor

She's a peerless advocate for my elderly parents. She knows how to get information on the latest lab tests from whatever doctors or nurses happen to be on the premises. You must understand that quite often in the divided realms of care facilities, the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. My sister-in-law brings it all together.

Then she should write a book.

She's awfully busy. I don't know when she'll have the time for it.