”Until death do we part.”
Every couple makes that solemn vow before sealing their commitment to a life together with a kiss.
But, for some, after decades of successfully navigating the challenges and struggles of marriage that vow is broken – or at least stretched – not by choice, but by circumstance.
In a recent article in the St. Albert Gazette, three elderly couples shared their stories about how failing health separated them from not only independent living but their spouses as well.
They were just three examples of the challenges our aging population experiences in a health-care system that has failed miserably to keep up with their needs.
Fifty years ago, Canada knew a storm was coming. That silver tempest is a result of the baby boom in North America. Nearly three million babies were born – 400,000 in Canada – between the mid-1940s and the mid-1960s. That influx in population has had dramatic effects on today's world.
With the oldest of that generation reaching the age of 70 and the youngest approaching their 60s, the latest Statistics Canada report pegs 31 per cent of Canada's population at older than 55.
The implications are societal. More people are leaving the workforce, there is increased pressure on the nation's pension services, but, most noticeably, are the effects being experienced in the health-care sector.
Canada spends an average of $6,000 per person on health care, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
An average of $6,298 is spent on a person aged 65 to 69. The cost increases to $11,557 for someone aged 75 to 79 and then again to $24,387 for someone aged 85 to 89, according to the health institute's 2013 data. In comparison, an average of $1,741 is spent on someone aged 20 to 24 and $2,290 for a person aged 40 to 44.
While cost demonstrates the effect an aging population will have on the everyday taxpayer, it does not illustrate the quality of life – or lack thereof – for many of Canada's elderly when they are no longer able to live independently.
There is a shortage of proper long-term care beds resulting in some 1,200 patients waiting in hospital beds for a proper facility, which also puts pressures on hospital care for other patients. The beds that have and will come online also do not necessarily meet certain needs, as the couples in Saturday's article demonstrate.
Back in October, the government approved $120 million in spending to work toward its election promise to add 2,000 long-term care beds to the system. Unfortunately that is $60 million less than what was previously committed by the Conservative government.
While any new space for long-term care is a good first step, we are way behind in addressing this problem. The money has come too late to meet the needs we knew were coming, and in turn that means higher costs and solutions that do little to address quality of life.
Instead of creating places for people to die, some separated from the people they love, more effort should be placed on providing places designed for people to live out their remaining days. It is too late for many, but there is still time for the government to remedy the problems it has allowed to happen through years of procrastination. Unfortunately the cost of playing catch-up will be higher than had it been proactive.
This editorial was first published in the St. Albert Gazette on Jan. 6.
