In an effort to instill an appreciation of the elderly in fourth and fifth form students from four selected schools, the St. Philip District Hospital and the National Assistance Board (NAB) will team up this Friday, April 15, to host a seminar at the Princess Margaret Secondary School in St. Philip.

??The half-day forum will be held in the Reginald Lewis Auditorium, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Six Roads, St. Philip school.?? It will seek to educate students aged 14 to 16 years about care of and appreciation for the elderly, how to spot elderly abuse and the symptoms of dementia, among other topics. The students in the pilot programme have been drawn from the Princess Margaret, Christ Church Foundation, Deighton Griffith and the Lodge Schools.

Organiser of the event, Principal Nursing Officer at the St. Philip District Hospital, Lolene Rawlins, deemed the seminar timely as the ageing population of Barbados steadily increased and the extended family fast becoming a thing of the past.?? "Many children are not spending as much time with grandparents because of the virtual extinction of the large extended family.?? As a result, many elderly persons are finding themselves living alone and with no immediate relatives to care for them," she said.

Medical Health Officer (South), Dr. Karen Broome, will deliver remarks and presenters will include physician at the District Hospitals, Dr. Bryan Charles; Senior Consultant Psychiatrist at the Psychiatric Hospital, Dr. Ermine Belle; Senior Social Worker at the NAB, James Cummins; and a representative of the Royal Barbados Police Force.??

lbayley@barbados.gov.bb

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