Participants in the Healthy Helsinki workshop approached the task of designing service concepts for elderly people by telling each other stories about their own parents. What they found was that many issues can be solved if we get prepared and start planning – now. Several important questions were risen:
- the need for choices
- how to enjoy social life
- prevention of mental illness
- need for physical touch
- importance of financial freedom
- The group concluded, that the most important aspects to be taken in consideration while designing services to elderly people, is to concentrate on enabling them to feel independent and valuable.
This could be achieved for example by small scale entrepreneurship. One good idea could be to organize services provided by people who already have retired from their day jobs and thus encouraging them to still stay active. Questions also rose whether services provided for the elderly by the society actually support dependency and not independence. Is the answer in entrepreneurship and voluntary groups or can the public sector rise up to the challenge in providing truly fulfilling and meaningful experiences through their services?
Facilitated by Ms. Anu Gardemeister, Forum Virium Helsinki
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