Care for the elderly

I  AM currently working as a medical resident in Salmaniya Medical Complex with a special interest in elderly medicine.

I am a Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland graduate, with medical and geriatric post graduate training. Over the next few issues I will be discussing multiple health issues that fall under the umbrella of ‘elderly medicine’, mainly  focusing on prevention of various chronic illnesses, early recognition of life threatening diseases and issues concerning caring for the ‘more mature’ generation.
One might ask, why is specialising in elderly medicine important and why is having such a specialty in a hospital beneficial?

There is no doubt that we are an ageing population. Over the next few decades, we will be experiencing a huge demographic change which will influence our society enormously.  The number of older people will increase dramatically in comparison to the younger generation. This will change the whole structure of our society, locally and globally.

Consequently, our requirements as a society involving healthcare and social care delivery, as well as the economics of dealing with such a high burden, will be altered.

According to the UN world population prospects, it is estimated that within the next 30 years, the life expectancy in Bahrain will increase by five years to reach 80 in the year 2040. See graph, below, left.

The whole population pyramid will also change over the next few years and elderly people (65 and above)  will make up around 10 per cent of the population.

This is quite a significant percentage, therefore, it is very essential to be prepared for such a surge, especially towards preventing illnesses and managing diseases that are most common in the elderly. 

More elderly patients mean more dependency levels. Our focus, therefore, should be geared towards more focused research into elderly medicine, patients and relatives education, prevention and screening programmes to detect illnesses early, all in order to improve and enable independent living in the home.
All of us at one stage or another have been involved in looking after an elderly person, whether it’s a parent, grandparent, neighbour, relative, or a friend.
Caring for an elderly person can be very stressful and scary sometimes. However, with the proper education, assistance and medical management it can be a very pleasant and fruitful experience.

So, in the next few weeks, I will be discussing common illnesses that occur in the geriatric population. I will talk about early recognition, diagnosing and treating these conditions.

We will also cover the services that are locally available and how and when to avail of them to assist elderly patients and their caregivers.
Feel free to contact me for ideas, remarks, or queries by emailing mahalsaeed03@gmail.com

See you again next week!

-Dr Mahmood Kadem Al Saeed,
MB Bch BAO MRCP(UK) DCSM