I believe we all know that in recent years, the topic of "group care" for the elderly has been in a state of "continuously heating up" and becoming more and more popular. After all, each of us will grow old one day, and the issue of elderly care involves the interests of all of us. Moreover, to a certain extent, this kind of elderly care is also becoming more and more popular among us because of its inherent pension model and advantages. Welcomed and trusted by many people.
It’s just that what we are hotly discussing today is that this method of “gathering together for elderly care” is not unique to the past few years. Instead, as early as more than 20 years ago, some elderly people have truly They implemented and participated in it, and they still lived together for a long time under this lifestyle of "working together to care for the elderly" in their later years, but they finally ended up disbanding.
The “group care for the elderly” 15 years ago and the “group care for the elderly” in Hangzhou in 2018
As early as 1999, Aunt Pu Yimin, a 72-year-old retired doctor, considered She wanted to make a bold attempt to provide for her elderly care in her later years. At that time, in their local village, No. 132 Gelong Village, Waigang Town, Jiading, Shanghai, there was a two-story old house that had been idle for many years and was ready to be sold.
So Aunt Pu Yimin, after discussing with a group of old friends, decided to "crowdfund" 50,000 yuan together to buy that house and use it as a fixed place for everyone to support themselves in their later years. In this place, everyone hugged each other for warmth and helped each other to provide care for the elderly. At that time, everyone even named it "Cizhou Nursing Home", and it was the first of its kind at that time.
But as time goes by, 15 years have passed in a blink of an eye. Some of the elderly people who gathered together to stay in the "Cizhou Nursing Home" moved into the current nursing home because they were too old to take care of themselves. Better nursing homes, and some elderly people have returned to their children's families because of nostalgia and family ties.
Later on, the number of elderly people in "Cizhou Nursing Home" became fewer and fewer, until the last elderly person, Aunt Pu Yimin, moved out of "Cizhou Nursing Home" in 2017. The 15-year-old "group care" method has announced its complete disbandment and disbandment.
Mr. Zhu Ronglin, 81 years old this year, was originally just an ordinary teacher. My wife, Aunt Wang, is 76 years old and used to be the director of a chemical plant. The old couple live together in a small three-story farmhouse with an area of ??more than 200 square meters. The children's homes are all settled in other places, and they rarely go home, so their home seems a bit deserted.
So they were ready to try "group care for the elderly", and then they invited other elderly people to their home to live with them. This process started on May 6, 2017, and to this day, group care The pension lasted for almost 3 years.
In the past three years, Uncle Zhu’s family has come and gone, and many elderly people have changed, but the overall operation has been relatively stable. But after three years, the once prosperous family pension has reached a crossroads. The lively and noisy scenes of the past are no longer replaced by a deserted place everywhere.
Why is it so difficult for this "group care" approach to elderly care to continue to develop?
1. Most of the “group care” places are far away from the main urban areas, and there will always be inconveniences in whatever we do.
Many of us elderly people, after their old age, most of the time want to Away from the hustle and bustle of the complicated city, turn to the suburbs or rural areas far away from the city to seek a true tranquility and spiritual sustenance. And the reason why many of us elderly people choose such places is to serve as their The main reason for the number of elderly care places is economic issues.
This type of nursing home is relatively cheap, but because it is far away from the city, if the elderly have any disease or other emergencies, its transportation will be difficult. A series of shortcomings and disadvantages caused by the inconvenience will show up. After a long time, some elderly people will choose to stay away after weighing it for a while.
2. Some elderly people have health problems and have to leave as a last resort
Although our "group care" originally had certain limitations on the physical health conditions of the elderly. According to the requirements and conditions of the elderly, it cannot be said that the elderly are very healthy and have no problems at all, but at the very least, the elderly should be of the same age and be able to take care of themselves! If the old man is in a "disabled state", there are probably very few old people who are willing to let him join in.
But for things like physical health, we can only prevent them rather than predict them. In this process, some of our elderly people may have major problems in their physical health. Due to illness or problems, one has to choose to leave the "group care". This is a very real problem.
3. Some elderly people choose to leave and return to their own families after the "temptation" and freshness of family affection have passed.
Many times, the reason why some of our elderly people chose in the first place is because Joining this big family camp of "together care for the elderly" is more out of curiosity, impulse, etc. However, as time goes by, as soon as the novelty wears off, their hearts change. There will be some loosening and shaking.
Especially when their children have a sign of "calling" them, their psychological defenses are, in most cases, difficult to contain again. After all, faced with such strong family affection, There are very few elderly people who can be truly unmoved and "hard-hearted". At this time, they will choose to leave and return to their families.
4. When the elderly live together for a long time, some contradictions and conflicts will inevitably break out among them
Even if we say that we had some elderly people who had similar interests and temperaments Wait, and join this "group care for the elderly", but when the tongue is still clenching the teeth, then our elderly people will inevitably have some bumps and conflicts when they live together for a long time. At that time, this was a normal thing.
Some of our old people don’t care too much about these things, and instead choose to be tolerant and understanding. However, some of our old people will be grudges. After a long time, some of our old people will You will feel resentful and feel that instead of being "suffering" here, you might as well leave and choose other retirement lifestyles.
How should we correctly view this kind of "group care"?
First of all: we must correct our mentality, that is to say, we cannot have excessive and unrealistic expectations for this "group care" method. As the saying goes: "Hope the more The greater the disappointment, the greater the disappointment." Although "group care" is a new way of caring for the elderly, it also has its own shortcomings and flaws. We must have a clear understanding of this, and "nothing is perfect in the world. ".
Secondly: This kind of "group care" method is not suitable for all our elderly people. If our elderly people want to join this kind of elderly care method, they must also consider it according to their own circumstances. It requires specific requirements and conditions, targeted rational choices, rather than blind and impulsive emotions. Everything must be "thought twice before leaping".
Finally: This "group care" method is not the only way for our elderly to care for the elderly, nor does it replace other ways of caring for the elderly. It is just one of the many ways we care for the elderly. Selection and supplementation, to put it bluntly, the elderly care problem cannot be completely solved by a simple single care method, but is something that requires a lot of efforts to be combined together to complete it.