Commissioner for Older People holds tackling ageism discussion in Downpatrick
The Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland, Eddie Lynch, visited Downpatrick recently as part of his ‘tackling ageism’ campaign.
He met with local elderly people in Denvir’s Hotel on Tuesday 12th September to seek their views on addressing ageism.
The Commissioner said that tackling ageism and ageist attitudes in society is a central part to his work and is one of his key priorities until the end of his term in 2024.
In order to fully understand this, the Commissioner is hosting six events across each county of Northern Ireland, to hear first-hand from older people about their experiences and views on ageism.
Commissioner Lynch was joined by group of older people for an in-depth discussion on the topic and to listen to their views and experiences.
Commenting on the event, the Commissioner said: “Meeting with older people is one of the most enriching parts of this job.
“I really value these engagements, as hearing real life experiences truly helps to inform my work.
“It was great to meet people from Downpatrick this morning.
“It’s important I hear the views of older people all across Northern Ireland to get a broad range of views and hear how they are affected by this issue.
“I am really looking forward to taking on board the feedback from these events which will shape my recommendations on tackling this important matter.
“One example of issues affecting people is the debate about providing universal bus passes. The key point is that it keeps the elderly active and that is one of the keys to good health, and it breaks down isolation.
“Therefore, in the longer-term, a healthy population means less cost for the health service.”
He went on to explain that one elderly person said when he retired that ‘I was someone on a Friday and no-one on a Monday.’ The sudden change into a different way of life itself can be quite traumatic.
There was also a lively discussion about perceptions of the elderly. He produced a word cloud with lots of words, many having a negative connotation.
These examples such as ‘grumpy’, ‘forgetful’, ‘sick’, etc. suggested negative stereotypes were active in the minds of younger people.
And the issue of advertising arose where anti-ageing creams and lotions were seen sometimes to be ‘ageist’ in their marketing approach.
The lively table discussions covered many topics and the feedback session all helped Commissioner Eddie Lynch to gather fresh ideas on the topic of ‘tackling ageism‘.
If you missed today’s event but wish to have your say, you can complete COPNI’s ‘Tackling Ageism’ survey here.
