Aging Population and Planning for the Elderly

This paper aims to provide a brief account of the key issues of population aging in Hong Kong, and relevant experience of other Asian cities and their implications for strategic planning in Hong Kong will also be examined. To plan for services for the elderly, the Report of the Working Group on Care for the Elderly (1994) has laid down the following guiding principles : a. Dignity of the elderly - the dignity of older persons in society must be recognized and respected, and this can be enhanced through promoting a sense of security, a sense of belonging and a sense of worthiness; b. Care in the community and ageing in place - elderly persons and their families should be supported through family care and community services to enable the elderly to grow old in their home environment for as long as the elderly person desires with minimal disruption; c. Continuum of care and integration of services - an integrated approach in providing services to meet the different levels of care needs of the elderly so as to enable them to stay in familiar surroundings and with minimal duplication.