Little Big China - Community Care

By 2020, China's senior population is expected to reach 225 million. Guan Mucun, an NPC deputy from Tianjin and a renowned Chinese singer, sees a solution in building stronger communities that can cater towards this population. With many families under the strain of only having one child to provide care for both parents, professional services that are community based are continually becoming more necessary.

Xi Yang Li and Guan Jing Li are both communities that model the kind of care and attention Guan Mucun is suggesting and are based in her hometown of Tianjin, a city nearby Beijing.  

In Xi Yang Li, the community uses a high-technology system where residents who have high-care needs can be either looked after during the day or checked in at their homes through a video call. The residents can also order and food, medicine or have a nurse or doctor visit them if needed. In addition to the medical facilities, the communities provide a centre for the health and social well being of retirees. These include cultural activities like singing, dancing, Ping-Pong and calligraphy.

In Guan Jing Li, the centre also caters to children and offers a health food store, and boasts a library where residents have written their own memoirs and can read and share their books. Guan Mucun hopes these communities can inspire other methods of community care across China. 

The government work report last week highlighted the importance on a focus on better senior care services by improving the social security system and enabling both the government and market to function efficiently.

China has taken a series of steps to deal with its aging population, including the easing of the decades long family-planning policy, meaning to increase the number of younger people who can provide or pay for aged care.