Tackling social isolation among elderly

A taskforce will be developed as part of an action plan to address social isolation among older Australians.

Victorian not-for-profit aged care provider Benetas is now calling for expressions of interest from those in the community wishing to take part.

The formation of the Social Inclusion for Older People taskforce came after attendees at a recent national roundtable in Melbourne heard that older people, regardless of their social, cultural or financial background, could become socially isolated.

The event, sponsored by Benetas and the Victorian Department of Health, brought older people and aged care organisations together to explore the issue of social isolation and its impact on older Australians.

Benetas chief executive, Sandra Hills, encouraged all Australians to think about their later years to avoid becoming socially isolated as they grow older.

“Even those who have busy, active, social lives for the majority of their life can find that they become socially isolated as they grow older due to our later years being long and complex,” Ms Hills said.

Up to five key priorities  identified at the roundtable that  assist in the prevention of social isolation include: health, housing, homelessness, transport and culturally diverse communities.

“What became very clear is there is an increased need to ensure older people are genuinely consulted and involved in the planning of services and solutions,” Ms Hills said, adding transport was mentioned “time and time again” as integral to preventing social isolation.

There was also strong consensus that the national focus on mental health has failed to include older Australians, with Ms Hills stating there was an urgent need for the mental health of older people to be included on the national policy agenda.

She added accessible and appropriate information about services and opportunities needed to be available to all older people in their own languages to prevent social isolation.

“In Victoria, this means information needs to be available in all 200 languages spoken by older people, not just the five to 10 more commonly spoken languages,” Ms Hills said.

To express your interest in joining the taskforce, contact Benetas’ research and development manager, Alan Gruner, on (03) 8823 7948 or email alan.gruner@benetas.com.au by next Wednesday, 30 November 2011.