Pandemics: Do They Change How We Address Age and Ageing?

This year has also been recognised as the "Year of Nurse and Midwife". International Day of Older Persons 2020 will highlight the role of the health care workforce in contributing to the health of older persons, with special recognition of the nursing profession, and a primary focus on the role of women - who are relatively undervalued and in most cases inadequately compensated.

The 2020 observance will also promote the Decade of Healthy Ageing (2020-2030) and help bring together UN experts, civil society, government and the health professions to discuss the five strategic objectives of the Global Strategy and Action plan on Ageing and Health while noting the progress and challenges in their realization. The global strategy is well integrated into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while ageing issues cut across the17 goals, especially Goal 3 which aims to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being of all at all ages”. As stated by Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Director-General, WHO) “acting on the strategy, is a means for countries to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and ensure that every human being regardless of age will have an opportunity to fulfill their potential in dignity and equality”

• ￭ Inform participants about the strategic objectives for the Decade of Healthy Ageing.
• ￭ Raise awareness of the special health needs of older persons and of their contributions to their own health and to the functioning of the societies in which they live.
• ￭ Increase awareness and appreciation of the role of the health care workforce in maintaining and improving the health of older persons, with special attention to the nursing profession
• ￭ Present proposals for reducing the health disparities between older persons in the developed and developing countries, so as to “Leave no one behind”.
• ￭ Increase understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on older persons and its impact on health care policy, planning, and attitudes.
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​Reference: UN Website "International Day of Older Persons", https://www.un.org/en/observances/older-persons-day​