02 February 2017
“Granny-Dumping” and State Responsibility
Old people, like children, should be cared for, says MP.
by Lynda Goetz
One of the shocking stories which came out this week was the one about the 76 year-old American with dementia who, it is alleged, was abandoned in November 2015 in the car park of Hereford bus station, without identification, by his wife and son. Was this a case of ‘granny-dumping’, as it is called in the States, where the high cost of care leads to cases of elderly relatives simply being left unidentified in hospitals, or something else? In the Panorama investigation which was aired on BBC1 on Monday evening, the son, who had flown over here with his parents from Los Angeles, claimed he had nothing to do with the apparent abandonment of his father, although he was seemingly unable to explain why he had left him here for eight months (the time it took for Roger Curry to be identified).
Whilst this might be something of an extreme case, are not many in this country equally guilty of ‘granny-dumping’? We may not actually abandon our elderly parents unidentified in a hospital or some random car park, but do many not take the view that care of the aged is a state, not a family responsibility? David Mowat, MP for Warrington South and, since July last year, a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Health, has pointed out this week that, whilst we regard it as perfectly normal to be responsible for looking after our children, we do not have the same approach or attitude to our parents. His remarks seem to have led to a storm of protest from certain quarters, with Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, accusing the Government of failing ‘to get a grip’. “This government,” he said “rather than deal with the problem, wants families to do it themselves” (my italics). His outrage seems misplaced. When looked at in the light of most other countries, or even history, this does seem to be a rather extraordinary attitude.
In Ancient Greece, Athenian law required that children look after their aging parents – with the punishment for not doing so being loss of citizenship (the second most severe punishment after execution). For nearly 2,000 years, little changed. In Great Expectations, Dickens created the character of The Aged P, the ancient father of John Wemmick, Pip’s friend and Mr Jaggers’ clerk. The Aged P is both a sentimental and a comic character, but the important thing is that his son does not question his duty to look after him. Who, in those days, would have done so otherwise? Well, by that stage there were the workhouses and poorhouses for those who had no money and no relatives, but, as we all know, life in those places was pretty dreadful. Germany was the first country to introduce an old-age pension for its retired workers at the end of the 19th C. Other countries were not exactly fast to follow. In the UK, the “old age pension” was brought in in 1909. The US did not do anything until Franklin D. Roosevelt created Social Security, including an old age pension, in 1935.
When, though, did it get to the point where we feel it is not our responsibility to look after our own aged parents, but ‘theirs’? By ‘theirs’ we can mean the state or simply some care home where we have ‘dumped’ our elderly relatives so that we can get on with looking after our children and living our own lives. Is this really how it should be? Attitudes towards the elderly differ greatly depending on culture and it is still, for example, the case today that Greek society does not seem to have the dismissive attitude towards the elderly that is so prevalent in many Western societies such as our own. The Native Americans have a wildly different approach to their old people than does the US in general. In Korea, even outside the family unit, citizens are socialised to show respect and deference to older people as well as figures of authority. The hwan-gap or 60th birthday is a time for celebration in Korea when children celebrate their parents’ passage into old age. Another large family celebration is held for a 70th birthday kohCui – meaning ‘old and rare’. (It is thought to be in part recognition of the fact that without modern medicine many of those aged people would not in the past have survived for so long). In China, although abandoning one’s family was always regarded as deeply dishonourable, this tradition is beginning to break down. The one-child policy and an aging population are beginning to make nursing homes more socially acceptable. In India, as is frequently pointed out, the older members of the family often live with sons or daughters and are still looked to for their knowledge and experience. Apparently in Persian (Iranian) the word for old also means ‘wise’ and ‘leader’ and the elderly are consulted in all important decisions.
So, is care of the elderly first and foremost a state/community responsibility, or a family one? Clearly, simple solutions are not available today. Life expectancy is greater; people are moving all over the globe for work and recreation; family set-ups are more complicated; medical treatments are more advanced. Old age is not what it was even a hundred years ago – a mere blink of an eye in historical terms. The fact that, to some extent, the state has taken responsibility for its old people has led to a greater reliance on and belief in government as the source of medical and social care. However, when it comes to the point where a council like Surrey is holding a referendum proposing that bills rise by 16 per cent so that it is able to meet its social care obligations, perhaps it is time to question our values and responsibilities. Certainly we all need to be saving more for our unproductive years. Perhaps it is also the case that we need to consider much earlier how we want to live out our later years. This country is not as far advanced in its provision of retirement homes or villages as say, Australia, and for some that may be a way forward.
Perhaps, in addition, we really do need to be looking at the idea of several generations living together under one roof. There are of course many instances where for a number of reasons this would not be feasible. But where it was possible, it could in many ways provide a solution to a number of issues (including, for example, childcare) and give us all a better perspective on the cycle of life and possibly even an easier relationship with our own inevitable death.
If you enjoyed this article please share it using the buttons above.
Please click here if you would like a weekly email on publication of the ShawSheet
