New geriatric hospital no dollars and cents issue – Humphrey

Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs Kirk Humphrey has called out some Barbadians for their gross mistreatment of and disrespect towards the elderly.

Speaking during a debate in the Lower Chamber on Tuesday, on a resolution to approve the compulsory acquisition of lands by the state of Lot 5A, Waterford St Michael, for the public purpose of constructing a new District Hospital, Humphrey responded to claims made by Barbadians that the government was spending too much money on the new facility.

The minister, who spoke at a recent town hall meeting about the need to strengthen the protections and the rights of the elderly, said it was “disrespectful” to frame the new facility for the elderly merely in dollars and cents.

“There is a concern by some that perhaps this geriatric hospital is costing a lot of money and perhaps the government is spending too much money, when they add up, on caring for the elderly. The cost of not doing it, I think, is beyond the imagination of all of us. Not only because our society is ageing at an extremely rapid rate, but it is so disrespectful for us to get in here [Parliament] and weigh in dollars and cents, about how much value should [go] to helping the old people who built this country,” he strongly stated.

The Elder Affairs minister further stated that the increasing reports of elder mistreatment and abuse were far too high. Close family members are often the main culprits in many cases, he said.

“All of us must now concern ourselves with this maltreatment of the elderly. It is too commonplace, people being taken advantage of, they are getting their cheques taken away, they are being cheated of their houses. Many times you will find – when the older person is alive and in need of help – you can not find a boy, or a woman, that claims to be a relative… They do not want to claim a relationship at all. Let that person die; people crawl out of the woodwork. They now know that they are the closest to the person in blood, so they want to claim the house, they want to claim the pension.”

He added: “In some cases, they only help them as long as they have money. When the money runs out, they are gone. We are seeing these things, and that is why the legislation that we are bringing is important.”

Humphrey declared that with the average age of Barbadians now at 40 years old along with the low birth rate the country has experienced over the past several years, more needs to be done to protect the elderly.

“The average age is not going to get lower, unless we get an immigration policy that allows us to bring in people. We are dealing with a situation that is going to cripple this country, cripple this economy. At the same time, none of us in this room should feel comfortable knowing that older people are being taken advantage of daily in Barbados.” (SB)