By Jennifer Pass
Special to Black Press
When I hear an Indigenous person refer, with obvious respect, to their Elders, it warms my heart.
It wasn鈥檛 so long ago that our culture also honoured its elders. As children, we had to treat our parents and grandparents with respect. So, what has happened?
Was it societal fear of the 鈥済rey tsunami,鈥� or a kind of dream world of eternal youth? Certainly, our society is afraid of, and averse to aging. We cannot seem to accept or decline our own mortality.
And the technology is constantly oriented to younger and younger children, and less user-friendly for elders. Many seniors do not have computers and cell phones, but to navigate the challenges of our 鈥渕odern鈥� society one can no longer rely on businesses or government offices having a human being at the end of a phone line, ready and available for help. With the advent of tech tools, we have seen the decline of human help, and this is leaving many older people unable to obtain the help and services that they need.
Seniors wait for hours on a phone call promising 鈥渃ustomer help.鈥� They show up at 6 a.m. to get lab tests (with the lab opening at 7 a.m.), perhaps because they are not comfortable with being, or able to be, in a 鈥渢ext line.鈥�
Health care also is getting increasingly computerized. And with many seniors not even having a family general practitioner, walk-in clinics, and the Emergency ward get over-used. Without a general practitioner, navigating the health-care system can be daunting, even to a young or middle-aged person.
We have a BC Human Rights Code with a stated goal of 鈥渇ostering full participation in economic, social, political and cultural life of British Columbia.鈥�
Under it, people cannot be discriminated against or denied services on the basis of (among other things) age. And yet we see seniors being denied accommodation in the Comox Valley on this basis. (We looked at this in this column last December.) And the 鈥渙ne size fits all鈥� method of obtaining goods and services, can also be discriminatory. Of course, the service provider can argue that other seniors can use the tech access channels, so it is not ageism. So, what is it? The consumer (or customer, or citizen, or taxpayer, ) is not being helped and is being expected to upgrade their skills to have their basic needs met 鈥� to be a recipient of any societal benefits.
Clearly, we cannot turn back the technological clock, but assistance with the navigation of the system 鈥� both government and business 鈥� is necessary. It is time to deepen our human experience, connect with seniors, assist where we can, and advocate for more user-friendly technology and 鈥渁 helpful鈥� human (please 鈥� not a robot) at the end of the phone line, whenever new technology is wedging its way into our daily life requirements. If we shift our gaze and become more comfortable with our mortality, and more engaged with our elders, we will be more able to slow down our hectic race for enjoyment.
It should be noted that there are services in the Comox Valley able to help in some areas. A few examples: The public library, ElderCollege and Lifelong Learning provide computer help and training. The Comox Valley Senior Support Society (phone: 250-871-5940) provides good systems-navigation support.
The BC seniors鈥� line can also be very helpful and yes, you will be able to talk to a human being. Just dial 211.
Some seniors, for a variety of reasons, cannot face the uphill battle of learning new skills, like computer and cell phone use. So, we do need, as a society to keep them 鈥渋n the loop鈥� and provide human help 鈥� an alternate way of getting the services that they need and want.
These thoughts are dedicated to Shona, an amazing 90-year-old who continues to advocate for seniors in the Comox Valley.
Jennifer Pass is the Co-ordinator of Comox Valley Elders Take Action (ETA)
