The National Universities Commission (NUC) has commenced arrangements for post
graduate study in geriatric medicine in 11 universities across the country, an
official said.
Dr Emem Omokaro, a leading
scholar on ageing studies development at the NUC, disclosed this in an
interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday.
Geriatrics or geriatric medicine
is a specialty that focuses on the health of elderly people and the UN has
designated June 15 as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD).
The day aims to focus global
attention on the problem of physical, emotional and financial abuse of elders.
Omokaro, also an Executive
Director at the Dave Omokaro Foundation (DOF), said modalities for the
development of curriculum for post graduate study in universities had already
reached advanced stage.
Though she did not disclose the
institutions involved, Omokaro said the programme was being executed in
collaboration with the DOF, supported by other stakeholders.
She added that ``the Dave
Omokaro Foundation is working with the NUC; we actually have a partnership
agreement to develop and build capacity in the management of the elderly in our
midst.
``On July 1 and July 2, we will
be hosting stakeholders’ meeting to discuss further on the subject matter; we
are in the process of developing a curriculum for the study of geriatrics at
post graduate level in our universities.
``We want to develop sufficient
capacity at all levels and believe that it is the first step toward addressing
the challenge of care for the elderly in our society.’’
The director called for review
of the approach to care and support for the aged in Nigeria and in developing
countries around the world.
She also called for a paradigm
shift in the support and care of the elderly from family and relations to
institutions or a more organised set up.
The scholar said caring for the
aged by family members or relations was no longer fashionable, given the trends
in the society and emerging challenges associated with the old practice.
She said the false impression in
many quarters was that ageing was not a development problem, stressing that the
mindset should be changed for the problem to be addressed effectively.
``There has to be a course of
action that is geared toward changing both the mindset and the existing
framework.
``There is actually nothing in
place for our elderly; we want to start something that is complete, care for
the aged must be taken as a national policy that must be addressed squarely.’’
She identified neglect as the
major challenge faced by the elderly in Nigeria, adding that health care,
transportation and access to other social services were other challenges.
Omokaro said defective policies
and the absence of a national policy were responsible for the poor care and
support for the aged in Nigeria.
She said a robust capacity
building programme supported by aggressive public sensitisation on care for the
aged would help in reversing the trend in Nigeria.
The director said DOF was at the
forefront of promoting a better environment for aged Nigerians, especially in
rural communities.
The World Health Organisation (WHO)
data suggests that four to six per cent of the elderly suffer from some form of
abuse.
Estimates indicate that by 2050,
the global population of people above the age of 60 will exceed the number of
younger people.
In Nigeria, the 2006 population
census indicates that there will be 3.8 million males and 3 million females
aged between 60 years and above. (NAN)
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