Since China's one-child policy was implemented in 1980, the younger generation has been under increasing strain to provide both financially and physically for their elderly parents. As a result, Chinese are breaking a cultural taboo and putting their parents in assisted living or nursing homes.
[Chang Hua, Director of a Nursing Home in Beijing]: "In recent years we have received increasing applications to live in our social welfare institution. All of the rooms are occupied, so hundreds of people are on the waiting list."
Hua says that residents pay about US $352 a month to live there, or 2,200 yuan. That's high for local standards, but Hua says it doesn't seem to deter applicants. With China's elderly living longer than ever before, and both women and men working more than ever, the shift towards nursing homes is natural.
One resident of a Beijing nursing home says that life in an elderly home is not what she expected.
[ Zhang Chongyun, Nursing Home Resident]: "There are a lot of activities here. Unlike other housewives staying at home, I love to sing and dance. So after moving here, I joined the Fashion Team and choir. I fell in love with this place."
Another resident says it is much more convenient living in an assisted living home than outside in the city.
[Yu Bo, nursing home resident]: "Since moving in here, everything we needed has been guaranteed. The staff takes good care of us. We're very comfortable, and everything is convenient."
According to the Bureau of Statistics, China's population over 60 years old is at an all-time high of 177 million, and still growing. By 2013, China's National Committee on Aging predicts that there will be over 200 million people over 60 in China.
But not everyone will have the comfort of aged care, particularly for those in the rural area. The World Bank released a study this year on China's aging population, and found that rural elderlies have become significantly worse off compared to their urban counterparts. They are often left to care for grandchildren, with their adult children leaving for the city to look for work.
For more news and videos visit ☛ http://english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ☛ http://twitter.com/NTDTelevision Add us on Facebook ☛ http://on.fb.me/s5KV2C
Be the first to comment