Many Western societies are ageing rapidly, and as professional caretakers are not growing nearly as fast as the people that need care, increasingly older people will need to rely on their social networks and informal care. In addition, with an increasing scarcity of available places in care homes and people’s desire to stay at home as long as possible, practical matters like the accessibility of your house are important factors to anticipate. These developments underline the importance of preparing for your older self.
However, despite the importance new research found that over 80% of Dutch people have not made any arrangements for when they are older. Surprisingly, especially people over 50 years old say they would rather delay or avoid thinking about these kinds of arrangements.
Brands can play a meaningful role in preparing people for old age. For example, by making the conversation accessible or by providing concrete steps people can take to prevent the risks of ageing. Insurer Univé for example, provides free “valpreventietraining” to teach (older) people how to minimize the risk of physical damage when falling by teaching safety techniques. How can you support an increasing segment of the elderly?
