Tag Archives: isolation
Revealed: Growing number of elderly dying alone with no relatives
- The number of elderly people dying alone in Wales with no relatives has been highlighted in figures obtained by WalesOnline.
- By Brendan Hughes, WalesOnline
- Aug 21 2012
Older people’s charity Age Cymru warned that as Wales’ population aged, the problem of loneliness was growing, with older men most at risk of isolation.
Figures from Welsh health boards show almost £400,000 was spent over the past four years on holding funerals for patients with no traceable relatives – a problem the Beatles sang about in their 1966 hit Eleanor Rigby.
More than 620 funerals have been paid for by health authorities in Wales between 2008-09 and 2011-12 for patients who have died with no next of kin.
Loneliness rife among older men
Thursday, 26 July 2012
Many men over 75 suffer from lack of social contact and depression
190,000 British men over 75, who live alone, are lonely according to WRVS research, which identified 36 per cent spend more than 12 hours of the day on their own.
The research found that these men are more likely to be lonely than women, however they are less likely to confide in friends and family about their feelings (11 per cent men, 24 per cent women).
The findings also highlight the extent to which these men are socially isolated with 41 per cent typically having two or less face to face conversations a day and one in 33 (three per cent) having none.
There is widespread agreement amongst experts that loneliness is a serious health issue because it makes it more likely that older people will develop illnesses that reach crisis level and need hospital care.
Charity acts as antidote to isolation of carers
Do you care for someone with dementia and feel afraid?
People who love and look after someone with dementia can feel just as frightened, vulnerable and uncertain as the person they care for, and are often elderly and infirm themselves.
Daybreak is a speciali st charity offering stimulation and support for people living with dementia and memory loss, as well as respite for their carers.
Daybreak helps people to live with dementia by working alongside families, professional help and other support to maintain the best quality of life for that person.
