Curbing loneliness among elderly

Creating opportunities, as well as environments, for older people to meet and ‘self-select’ friendships is important when trying to curb loneliness, Victoria’s Council on the Ageing, Sue Hendy, says.

Ms Hendy spoke to DPS News last week following a report showing the number of “lonely people” in Melbourne is increasing.

The Grattan’s Institute report reveals there are  more people with “fewer friends and good neighbours” compared to two decades ago, and poorly designed communities do not promote social connection. As well the report highlighted the elevated risk of loneliness faced by older people.

“The built environment has a significant impact on the way we feel and interact,” Ms Hendy says. “This is partly why COTA is pushing for Aged Friendly (WHO) environments, which would enable people of all ages to interact and be able to get around more easily,” she continues.

Some of the report’s recommendations to improve environments for society’s most vulnerable include:

• Incorporating soft edges to commercial buildings, such as the use of stairs or levels to double as seats.
• There needs to be “less blank walls” as blank walls may discourage people from spending time on the street.
• New York ‘pop-up’ cafes and neighbourhood street lunches in some British cities should be adopted in Australia.

Ms Hendy insists “living alone is not the same as being lonely”.

“I think we have to make sure we don’t get confused and ensure we focus on quality of relationships as being important.”

She says it is vital to “recognise the importance of friendships, including maintain existing ones and creating new ones”.

Recommending more responsive transport systems is one solution Ms Hendy believes may help curb loneliness.

“Having support structures and programs in place to support people to maintain things that are important and having to them [is also important]. Eradicating ageism is also a key underpin to this discussion,” she adds.

How do you think we can curb loneliness among the elderly? Share some of your strategies by commenting in the box below.