A seminar was organised by the Caremalta Academy within Caremalta Group as part of the company’s events  to mark International Day of Older Persons earlier this month. The seminar, led by PBS journalist Mario Xuereb, focused on the future of  long-term care of the elderly. It was attended by various stakeholders including doctors, nurses, public oficers, managers of old people’s homes,  the elderly and academics.

The aim of the seminar was to examine whether we should look beyond adhering to standards, policies and regulations and start to really get to know the people we should be caring for – to see what their real needs and wants are. By doing this we would be providing person-centred care the elderly deserve.

The aim of the seminar was to look beyond adhering to standards

Caremalta CEO Natalie Briffa Farrugia said the seminar should serve as an opportunity for all working in care to reflect whether the current practices are elderly-friendly and respectful to the full dignity of the older person.

The keynote speaker at the seminar was Prof. Pierre Mallia, who touched on a number of ethical issues related to old age and the care of older people. He also spoke about the dignity of the older person, asking whether the elderly were most often treated and spoken to as if they were children.

Prof. Mallia also said that allowing one to die in dignity was not killing. At a certain point, tender loving care becomes more important than receiving treatment.

He asked whether it is high time to think about extending insurance cover to community care, which could encourage and facilitate the older person’s stay at home even at a certain stage. However, he did ask whether certain community services that have been in place for almost 25 years were still working.

Participants spoke about the need to have trained and qualified staff for older people, particularly in homes. Other participants spoke about the importance of being more flexible when dealing with elderly residents in care homes.

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