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General News of Wednesday, 11 November 2015

Source: GNA

Denmark to provide support for geriatric care services

Nana Oye Lithur, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection Nana Oye Lithur, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection

Denmark has agreed to aid Ghana with financial and technical support to provide geriatric care services.

Nana Oye Lithur, the Gender, Children and Social Protection Minister, who broke the news said the West African nation and its European ally had already signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to this effect.

She said the package involves promoting geriatric education by mainstreaming this specialty of medicine into the main nursing and medical curriculum.

The goal is to prevent and treat diseases and disabilities in older adults.

Nana Oye Lithur was speaking during the free registration of more than 500 elderly people in the Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality for the national health insurance scheme (NHIS) at Ejura.

It is part of the nationwide health insurance registration dubbed “Caring for our elderly”, being jointly carried out by the Ministry and the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).

The Minister reiterated the government’s determination to provide adequate social safety nets for the elderly – to ensure that they were taken good care of.

She noted that giving them access to social services, especially health, would relieve them of stress, frustration and tiredness, conditions which could gradually deteriorate their situation.

The government would put in place the necessary measures to make sure that old age did not become a curse – to make the elderly enjoy life to the full, she added.

Alhaji Mohammed Bawah Braimah, the Municipal Chief Executive, urged the people back the government in the implementation of its development agenda.