Age UK express concerns over elderly care

Age UK have reported that around 168,000 older people in the UK have stopped receiving help with daily tasks such as cooking, washing and dressing. While mobility aids go a long way towards ensuring older peoples’ independence, certain tasks prove impossible without some form of assistance and many claim that the continuing government funding cuts to such services as meals on wheels is having a dramatic negative impact on society.

As a charity that works to help and support older people, Age UK are extremely concerned about the consequences of cuts to social care being implemented by the government.

Age UK are advocates of helping older people live in their own homes for as long as possible, which is why they have selected a number of the best stair lifts for the elderly and bathroom aids including accessible walk in showers and baths to make such decisions as easy as possible and to keep older people as independent as they can be in their own homes. This being said, such services as meals on wheels being cut is seen by the charity as doing a huge disservice to the nation’s elderly, as their staff complement what is offered by such mobility aids to help provide a rounded lifestyle.

The government

Social care is reported to have been experiencing ongoing deterioration since 2005/6 when Labour was in power, according to the Guardian, and since this time the deterioration has picked up speed under the coalition government. There are concerns that should this continue the elderly will be the ones to suffer which, in an ageing population, could have a detrimental effect on the future of the country. With an increasing number of older people now being refused care in their own homes, this is not only increasing the degree of loneliness and risk to health and independence but is also putting an increased pressure on their families, according to the article.

Through carrying out such reports that have uncovered the extent of this problem detailed in this article and providing quality mobility aids to the nation’s elderly, Age UK are continuing to raise the plight of the elderly and work towards a better future for them and their families.

Image Credit: Paulio! (flickr.com)The charity Age UK expresses their concerns over the continued cuts to funding for social care for the elderly | Handicare News