PHL has a fast-growing aging population, now at 7.5 million

THE Philippines is now classified under World Health Organization (WHO) standards as an aging population, with 7.5 million elderly citizens now and an estimated 14 million elderly by 2040.

This figure, coupled with the large number of unemployed registered nurses in the country, makes the Philippines an ideal market for geriatric-health care through nursing and retirement homes.

Incidentally, this sunrise industry of geriatric-health care is also being advocated by a public-private partnership (PPP) project of the Retirement and Healthcare Coalition (RHC) to promote the Philippines as a retirement destination for foreigners.

RHC has launched Human Touch, a PPP project among four foreign chambers of commerce, the Department of Tourism, the Department of Health and the Philippine Retirement Authority.

The project involves the creation of a standard-quality management system that will guide the operations of nursing and retirement homes in the Philippines to promote these businesses among foreign retirees seeking to retire here.

The project will be funded by the German Academy for International Cooperation and the quality management system will be developed by German nursing home Pflegen & Wohnen based in Hamburg.

Dr. Miguel Ramos, chief of the National Center for Geriatric Health, said the project will ensure the safety and quality of the services of the nursing homes, and the transparency of their services in terms of disclosing the fees they charge their elderly clients.

There are about 30 nursing homes throughout the Philippines today, but more businesses can be accommodated by the industry if its market can be expanded to foreign retirees seeking to retire in the Philippines.

RHC outlined the advantages the Philippines has in the industry of geriatric-health care, which is interdependent with the country’s tourism industry.

The strengths of the Philippines in this industry include the available labor of about 300,000 unemployed nurses in the country, the changing attitude of Filipino families toward hiring nursing homes to take care of their elderly, and the traditional advantages of Filipinos over its neighbors—the long historical ties with Western cultures and the ability to speak English. But there are also weaknesses, such as the lack of a regulatory framework for nursing homes, the lack of education in geriatric-health care among Filipino nurses and doctors, and the unwillingness of insurance companies to insure elderly people who are above 65 years old.

These are the reasons the RHC is working with the DOH and other government agencies to craft a regulatory framework that will govern nursing homes and provide for training and a system of accreditation for nurses and doctors who wish to undergo additional training in geriatric health. –David Cagahastian, Businessmirror