silver innings ngo – The Metrognome

The problems of the old in Incredible India

An American medical student writes about interacting with seniors in Mumbai and Bangalore and the many insights into Indian life.

by Robin Reister

Part I

India is big, crowded, and changing faster economically and socially than it can seem to keep up with. The largest democracy in the world with over one billion people, it is completely overwhelming and exhilarating, but there is also a prevalent warmth and hospitality within the people wherever you go.

India’s history is as rich and colourful as it can get, with hundreds of different conquerors and border changes, the famous story of independence led by Mahatma Gandhi, and evidence of it all remaining in the temples, statues, and preservations of countless historical sites. The culture is heavily influenced by religion and their daily rituals influence almost every part of the lives of the Hindu people I interacted with. Muslims and Christians, along with Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Jews, and Zorastrians also are seen openly practicing their religions, and all living in relative peace and symbiosis with each other.

But when talking to the locals about what is changing, especially from the elderly generation, you hear about the huge social changes taking place. The breakdown of the Indian family model, which used to be comprised of a large household with all generations, is now becoming nuclear and leaving many from the silver generation without a home.

My rotation focussed on the health and social issues of the elderly population in India. I worked with a multi-faceted medical NGO in Bangalore, the Nightingale Trust, whose realm includes home medical care, an inpatient dementia care unit, adult day care, and rural medical visits amongst other things. I also worked with a newer NGO in Mumbai known as Silver Inning Foundation which uses social networking and media to help address multiple human rights issues and needs of the elderly. My goals in this rotation were to learn about the health and human rights issues involving the elderly in India and compare them to the USA’s, share my knowledge and ideas with the Indian people I work with, and use my connections and what I learned in the future in some way to help address these and similar problems.

Before leaving, I had some grasp on the issues affecting the elderly. I had heard that there were rising amounts of elderly people due to increasing life expectancy, and little infrastructure to support them. Also I knew rates of diabetes were on the rise. I wanted to explore the issues from a medical and human rights perspective, as are my interests. On arriving, I found that these things were true, and more. Again and again I heard the stories of children abandoning their parents, or moving away to the US. There was no Government support to help them finance their daily life. Rates of depression have increased in the elderly as an outcome of the changing family structure too.

The NGOs I worked with were helping to address these issues. I was a part of these NGOs as an observer and short-term worker. I think my presence benefitted the people I interacted with by sharing my knowledge of how the elderly are treated in America and by showing my support of the activities and the people in need.

Tomorrow: ‘Do not complain about health issues’ is the Indian’s mantra.

Robin Reister visited India in 2011. Today, she is a practicing doctor in a hospital in New York. ‘Grey Space’ is a weekly column on senior citizen issues. If you have an anecdote or leagl information, or anything you feel is useful to senior citizens, caregives and the society at large, feel free to get it published in this space. Write to editor@themetrognome.in or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Themetrognome.in and we will publish your account.

(Pictures courtesy Robin Reister and Silver Innings Foundation)

A second home for our seniors

Mumbai gets first assisted living facility for senior citizens at Nala Sopara, under the aegis of the Silver Innings Foundation.

by the Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Last weekend, we made the trip to A1 Snehanjali, an assisted living facility for senior citizens at Nala Sopara. At that point, it seemed difficult to believe that anybody would send their aged parents so far away from the city; the facility itself is about four kilometres away from the railway station.

But once we got there, we saw why not just their families, but the senior citizens themselves would like to give Snehanjali a try. Located inside a villa on a chowk that is in close proximity to a school, a market and a hospital, the place is not cut off from the rest of the area and is well-equipped to both house and handle residents.

“We were very clear that we are not opening an old age home. This is a space for assisted living,” says Sailesh Mishra of Silver Innings Foundation, which has started A1 Snehanjali. “People don’t need old age homes, which are essentially dumping grounds for our elders. They need services which may be both short term and long term. For instance, some people need to travel for a few weeks and need their parents to be taken care of. Or they may be based abroad but would want their parents to have medical attention and to be monitored. Many times we blame families for sending their elders away, but at times, they have no choice.”

Why assisted living matters

For a city that has hardly any facilities for senior citizens, an experiment like A1 Snehanjali is a worthwhile one. “There are five bedrooms, and we are able to take in only 13 people at the moment. There are several applications, but we select the residents carefully,” explains Sailesh. “We are trying to ensure that the space is interactive, and that it feels like home.” He adds that the selection process includes rejecting applications where it is clear that the family is banishing the elder from the home, or if the person needs daily nursing.

Silver Innings has tried very hard to make the space a welcoming one. Walking surfaces are provided in the compound, with specially-paved areas and lawns for residents to walk on barefoot. Flowers, herbs and vegetables have also been planted; the produce is to be used in the kitchens. “We provide vegetarian food, low on salt and spices, but once a month, a resident may eat non-vegetarian food brought from home,” Sailesh says. On-site medical facilities are available round the clock.

About seven CCTV cameras monitor the premises constantly, and the gates are always locked. “Those suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s have the tendency to wander,” Sailesh explains. “We have to keep them occupied, so we have planned daily activities that they can be a part of if they wish to. Otherwise, they can watch television or listen to music or simply stay in their rooms.” Sundays is a day of eating whatever the residents wish, and they are permitted visitors on any day of the week. “We don’t have a lights-off rule and in fact, there are no rules for residents,” says Sailesh.

Who can make the cut

The NGO is very clear on who can be admitted. “We meet the person only through a referral, to gauge the need to send the person to us in the first place. We take in people who are suffering from Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, those bed-ridden by paralysis but not needing constant nursing, and people over 80 with mobility issues,” he says. But people suffering from TB and AIDS are not admitted as of now.

“There is a Rights of Residents charter that must be signed. We insist on families visiting them once a month, or if they can’t, we’ve provided Skype too. Besides this, we allow the residents to network outside with the local community. The idea is to let the resident have a good life here.”

Specially created lawns to walk on barefoot

Paved surfaces for walking on. These have been found to be useful for dementia patients.

If you want to know more about A1 Snehanjali and if you think you should send an older family member there, contact Sailesh Mishra on silverinnings@gmail.com or a1snehanjali@gmail.com.