For a few generations now, one of the first things a parent does when moving houses or cities, is to make contact with a paediatrican. Children are frequently ill (they’ll pick up infections from just about anywhere), there are numerous vaccinations to be given, and there’s a relationship to be built — after all, you’re putting your child’s well-being in someone else’s hands.
As the generation of today’s middle-agers who did this for their children, we will probably use the same yardstick to pick a doctor for ourselves when we’re in our 60s. We’ll look for a geriatrician to build our (medical) history with and who will understand our idiosyncrasies.
Dr Joe Henderson is a GP in Chennai who has set up a service to help seniors. Most people, he says, need social support: a widow abandoned by her family, a couple that can’t move out of the house, a family that is present but neglectful of their parents.
As our country ages, birth rates fall, and life expectancy rises, especially in our cities, we’ll probably see more and more doctors specialising in geriatric care, with super-specialisations too, catering to this ageing population (geriatric neurology, geriatric gastroenterology, for instance), much like what happened with paediatrics.
Where the disciplines will differ, says Dr Henderson, is that older people may not be mobile, which means the doctor will need to visit. Plus, in a family with limited resources, children will take priority. The answer then, just as with children, is to look at preventive medicine: boosting immunity with quality food and exercise, minimising falls, vaccination.
It is ironical that for a generation that spent hours poring over books on child-rearing and getting parenting on point, we ourselves may be reading manuals about growing old. In fact, if you look carefully, we’ve probably already started. Today, ageing well is a theme across the www with how-tos going beyond losing the wrinkles. Movement rather than fitness has taken centre-stage. We’re armed with health insurance and are looking to invest in elder-care homes and facilities.
Seniors will soon be seen as ‘a market’ with our own ‘toys’ to play with, diapers to pee into, and jarred mushy food to eat. Then there’s senior tech that goes beyond large numbers on mobile phones. We’ll survive it, just as we did parenting.
