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Fung Keung writes the HK government should adopt strategies to help dementia sufferers, including increased funding, to cope with a rapidly graying population

Hong Kong's population is aging fast. It is a trend that is clear even to the uninformed.

The Census and Statistics Department projected on Sept 25 that people aged 65 or above will make up 30 percent of the city's population by 2034, compared to 15 percent last year. By 2050, people aged 85 or above will hit 9 percent of the population - up from the current 2.3 percent.

These numbers are scary as far as dementia cases are concerned. Dementia is a severe impairment or loss of intellectual capacity and personality integration, due to the loss of or damage to neurons in the brain. Sufferers normally cannot take care of themselves. They need carers. A recent study shows that one in 10 people aged between 65 and 79 in Hong Kong suffers from dementia. For those above 80, one in three is tormented by the disease.

The local population will hit a peak of 8.2 million by 2043. Some rough calculations show that about half a million people will suffer from dementia in 30 years' time. This is a figure the government, medical experts and social services groups must reckon with. Prevention is better than cure, as an old saying goes.

"By then, the problem of dementia will be everywhere," a member of the government's Elderly Commission was quoted by a local newspaper as saying. He added that it was those over 80 years old who would demand exponentially more medical, social and community support.

The Hong Kong Alzheimer's Disease Association estimates that dementia-related costs will amount to HK$24 billion this year. While the government still has not provided subsidized dementia-specific services, some experts from the association have been invited by the Macao SAR Government to devise a 10-year action plan to tackle the aging issue. If Hong Kong government officials do not think dementia will become a big headache for Hong Kong in 30 years' time, they had better think again. The "dementia storm" is approaching fast. We had better start building shelters.

Some social work scholars, who are specialists on the elderly, are pushing for community care rather than institutional care for dementia patients. Community care is more effective and humane, they say. Some old folks who suffer from memory loss are averse to staying at elderly care homes or other institutions such as psychiatric hospitals.

To put the issue in perspective, social work scholars also are urging the government to make a decision on retirement protection, such as adopting a universal pension plan for all Hong Kong inhabitants as soon as possible. Such a decision will alleviate dementia sufferers' pain by providing money to help them pay for consultations with medical specialists, which cost a considerable amount. Such a universal pension plan will go a long way in easing the fears of sufferers who otherwise may not be able to afford the high medical costs.

Social work scholars, moreover, are exhorting the government to increase funding to provide more care for those who suffer from dementia. For example, medical and psychological experts can visit patients at their homes rather than asking them to travel all the way to government clinics if they have government subsidies for such visits. Meanwhile, the government should spend more money on providing "cognitive" training for dementia sufferers. Currently, it is costly for patients to visit cognitive specialists (mostly psychologists and psychotherapists). Without government help, it seems that only rich dementia patients can afford to receive such training to delay the scourge of memory loss.

In short, the government is well-advised to formulate strategies and provide funding to help dementia sufferers. Immediate action is required.

(HK Edition 10/12/2015 page9)