Will China be able to care for millions of dementia sufferers?
Experts warn the government must plan for the huge numbers likely to suffer with the condition in the coming decades as the nation’s population rapidly ages
In a large room at a care centre in Shanghai’s Putuo district, nursing worker Xu Maohua looks into the eyes of an elderly man.
“Zou Zhengming, am I Han Yuanzhu?” asks Xu, referring to the patient’s wife.
Zou, a 66-year-old man who has lived with dementia for six years, raises his eyes, looks at Xu for a time and says, “No, you are not.”
The answer wins him a thumbs-up from Xu who goes on to ask, “Shall we sing the song The East is Red?” She claps to the rhythm, sings some lyrics and Zou finally joins in.
This is a typical scene at this day care institution, among only a few facilities in Shanghai to target the city’s burgeoning population of senior citizens affected by dementia.
Day centres offer some respite for family members acting as carers for those afflicted with the condition. Zou’s wife Han sends him to the centre at 8.30am each day from Monday to Friday and picks him up at 4.30pm.
At this government-subsidised centre, eight dementia patients including Zou are looked after by nursing workers. The patients also have handicraft and rehabilitation sessions to slow their progressive loss of memory and cognitive skills – the main symptoms of dementia.