Looking After China’s Senior Empty Nesters

Recently， Mr. Chen left Shanghai， where he lives and works， and returned to his hometown in Jiaxing of east Chinas Zhejiang Province. He had intended to visit his elderly parents， who had failed to answer his phone calls for three weeks running， only to find that both had died at home behind closed doors.

His father had died of an electric shock， and his mother， who suffered from senile dementia， had died of dehydration and hunger with no one to take care of her. Chen had not returned to visit during the three-week period because he was simply too busy to leave his job.

Although extreme， this case is by no means an isolated incident. With a lack of care for the elderly becoming an increasingly apparent problem in Chinese society， the issue of how best to take care of ones parents while living and working far away poses a challenge not only to the children in question， but also the whole of society.

While some have blamed Chen and other children struck by such tragedy for these misfortunes—arguing that the current generation has failed to show filial piety to their parents—others also point out that the communities and society as a whole should do their part in remedying this pressing social problem.

Improving social security

yuan Guangkuo （Xinhua Daily Telegraph）： Sometimes， its not that children are not good to their elderly parents， but rather that they have difficulties of their own. They have to work hard to make money to support their families， which forces them to leave their parents at home. At the same time， owing to the same fi- nancial pressures， they cant afford to bring their parents to the cities to live with them.

Although the tragedy concerning Chens parents was an extreme case， it is indicative of the increasingly significant quandary of how to take care of senior empty nesters in an aging society， an issue encompassing financial support as well as spiritual comfort and care in daily life.

Children undoubtedly should be the first in line to care for their elderly parents. However， when they are genuinely unable to stay with their parents owing to their circumstances， we must turn to society to show more care for the elderly in their stead.

Since there are home owner committees and property management companies in most urban residential communities， might it perhaps be possible for them to do something to care for seniors living by themselves？ For example， they could pay daily visits to the elderly and if the seniors are found to be seriously sick or in need of help， the children may be contacted at the first available opportunity. If committees or companies are not able to afford to provide such a service free of charge， they could adopt a fee-paying system. It is almost certain that the majority of children of elderly people in this situation would not resent the expense.endprint

Successful attempts to resolve these issues could prove instructive. For instance， some communities recruit volunteers to take care of elderly people. When the day arrives that those volunteers need care and help from others， theyll be offered the same service in turn.

In most cases， children do not mean to neglect their elderly parents， but owing to various complications， they are unable to fulfill their duties as well as expected. Therefore， while children should try to overcome obstacles and care for their parents， its also important for the whole of society to do something to help seniors living on their own.

wang Chuantao （Jinan Daily）： This is not the first time that we have heard such news： senior citizens who live alone being found dead after days or even months by their returning children， their neighbors or even thieves. These stories highlight the ever-growing number of seniors and the many gaps in Chinas current social security system for the elderly. If no largescale changes are made to the current system， such tragedies can be expected to repeat themselves over and over again.

At a time when the parents of the first generation of only children born under the family-planning policy are now reaching old age， more and more seniors will be left living by themselves， while their children go to big cities seeking education and employment.

In the modern age， its impossible for children to always stay together with their parents. In many cases， individuals have to move around to make a better living for themselves and for their parents. These young people in their 20s and 30s hope to do better in their jobs， and thus they usually dont have enough time to visit their elderly parents. In many cases， visiting frequently can also cost a lot of money， which remains a problem for a number of families.

In order to better accommodate senior people， local governments have done a lot. However， so far these efforts seem to have been unable to fundamentally resolve this issue. There are still not enough nursing homes， welfare institutes or social workers for the elderly left by themselves at home. Social services focus on taking care of seniors have not yet reached a sufficient level of professionalism.

The old tradition of raising children to ensure being looked after when one reaches ones twilight years is fast becoming outdated and obsolete， and this behooves the government to undertake more responsibility in supporting the elderly by creating more reasonable and effective mechanisms to take better care of senior empty nesters.endprint

Frequent visits

yang Xingdong （Jingjiang Evening News）： The tragedy that befell Chens parents was in fact avoidable. Indeed， adult children often need to work away from home to make more money， but this is not a valid excuse for neglecting to visit ones elderly parents. Taking care of ones parents need not necessarily conflict with ones devotion to their work.

In the real world， everyone living far away from their elderly parents should ask themselves whether they are doing their best to guarantee their elderly parents live in good conditions. At the very least， they could call their faraway parents more often and try to solve problems within their limited capacity. This would mean that even though they are not living with their parents， the elderly can still feel like they are being looked after. Doing this would not cost much time or money.

Rapid urbanization is making distances between family members ever greater. It is said that the old couple that passed away knew their neighbors， but the relationship was only at the level of greeting， with no closer ties having been established. If the connection among neighbors had been closer or the community had paid more attention to its elderly members living alone， the couple would not have died at home without having been discovered for so many days.

With senior citizens becoming an increasingly large demographic in China， making sure that the elderly can enjoy their golden years in comfort and safety is becoming an increasingly urgent question.

Its great that in some communities， senior citizens living in solitary conditions are visited by community social workers or volunteers. The tragedy that was visited upon Chens parents， however， shows that this social aid network does not cover all communities. The authorities need to think harder and do more in regard to increasing emergency aid to vulnerable senior people.

li liuhe （www.dahe.cn）： Elderly people that are left alone tend to lack the capabilities necessary to take care of themselves. In case of any accidents， for instance， they may be unable to rescue themselves from the situation.

In July 2013， it was written into law that adult children should go back home to visit their elderly parents regularly. Children are now required to visit their parents more often and thus they should try their best to go home to keep abreast of their parents recent health and living conditions and to ensure they live a comfortable life in the senior years.

Meanwhile， to ensure that children pay regular visits to their elderly parents， there should be laws that demand employers grant special holidays or periods of leave so that their employees can go home without worrying about their income suffering as a result.endprint