Assoc. Prof. Tavida Kamolvej, Deputy Governor of Bangkok, was a speaker on the topic of Barriers and solutions to successful self-care programs at the 2024 annual academic conference on “Achieving self care for Aging in Place”, organized by the Thai Society of Phytopathology and Gerontology between 6 – 8 March 2024, onsite and online at Asia Hotel Bangkok, Ratchathewi District.
The Deputy Governor of Bangkok said that it is important to take care of yourself and prepare yourself before entering old age so that you are healthy and can go about your daily life smoothly. As a unit, when working with the elderly, we should not focus only on health or even work-life balance, because taking time for oneself is difficult because of the conditions of status and living in the city. The hardest thing is time. Whenever health can be made a daily matter, then it will be beneficial.
The best way to take care of your health is to not get sick, but as a city person, living conditions mean that you don’t even have time for a health check. Bangkok tries to respond to this point by making people aware of their health status. In addition, Bangkok also places importance on holistic self-care for the elderly. It covers Physical Self-Care, Emotional Self-Care, Social Self-Care, Spiritual Self-Care, Intellectual Self-Care, Environmental Self-Care and Financial Self-Care.
Assoc. Prof. Tavida Kamolvej, Deputy Governor of Bangkok, presented a plan to develop the quality of life of Bangkok’s elderly through the operations of the Medical Bureau and the Health Department to produce caregivers to help the elderly stuck at home/bedridden to maintain their physical strength and prevent it from deteriorating too quickly and establish a comprehensive clinic for the elderly, a quality clinic for the elderly, care for the elderly and palliative care, medical treatment and rehabilitation, moving medical units to provide services, visiting homes to provide continuous nursing care as a complete team by multidisciplinary doctors, pharmacists, nurses, social workers, and physical therapists It includes support for adult diapers for sick and dependent elderly people, as well as tripartite integration with relevant agencies to care for the elderly in all dimensions. In addition, there is a senior citizen club that supports group activities together to build physical and mental health. Currently, there are 410 senior citizen clubs with over 33,864 members.
“This is an effort to ensure that the elderly are cared for and thought of holistically so that the elderly can live a happy life. It is not only about promoting health or preparing for quality aging but also about creating an ecological environment for the elderly in this big city to feel not too alone.”
