The world of Tzu Chi (Vol.106)

52 2019 • 01 Serene Reflection Between Master Cheng Yen and Mr Tang Chi-Ming on Caring for Seniors Who Live Alone April 30, 1998 Mr Tang: There are 60,000 to 70,000 seniors living alone in Taiwan. The government plans to provide home care service to seniors who choose not to move to institutions such as nursing homes. The government will pay people to conduct scheduled and unscheduled visits to these seniors’ homes several times a week. However, government agencies are limited in their volunteer resources. As such, they cannot take care of all the seniors adequately. Even though some community organizations are already helping, it is still very difficult. When resources are not focused, problems cannot be effectively solved. Therefore, the government hopes to involve Tzu Chi in coordinating the manpower, finances, and materials to divide up the time and delegate the location for volunteers to eventually take care of all lonely seniors. The plan for senior home visits is to provide medical care to weak and sickly elders. If the seniors are healthy, the volunteers will chat with them or help them with household chores. Master Cheng Yen: All seniors were young once. They contributed to society during their productive years. And not only people who held high positions contributed to society. All parents contribute to society by dutifully raising their children and caring for their family. A healthy family is the backbone of a healthy society, so they did a lot for society. When their parents are old, it is time for the younger generation to reciprocate. I have been thinking about how we can help seniors live dignified life when they are nearing the end. We should care for them with respect. Overseas Tzu Chi volunteers frequently visit their local nursing homes. It is sad to see that some nursing homes are not well managed and are unable to provide seniors with quality care. Even if seniors are well taken care of physically, they are still lonely and depressed because family members seldom visit. Therefore, they often shed happy tears when Tzu Chi volunteers spend time with them. That breaks my heart. For seniors, living in nursing home is a last resort. What they really need is to live at home with their families. In order to solve this problem, we should promote the idea of setting up a nursing Question & Answer Mr Tang Chi-Ming, Head of the Provincial Welfare Department of the Republic of China, came to see Master Cheng Yen at the Tzu Chi Taichung Office. He was impressed and touched by Tzu Chi’s high efficiency, massive manpower, and its manner of solving problems thoroughly during disaster relief. He also conveyed the government’s determination to solve the problem of seniors living alone. He hopes that Tzu Chi will be able to help the government.