PUTRAJAYA: The National Senior Citizens Day celebration is held on 1st October every year in accordance with the United Nations (UN) declaration which has designated the date as International Senior Citizens Day.
Director General of Health, Tan Sri Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah said, this year, Senior Citizens Day is celebrated with the theme “Digital equality across the ages.”
Dr. Noor Hisham said,the Ministry of Health (MOH) is always committed in developing the national health system, especially to provide support to the elderly. This step is important in preparation for the increase in the population aged 60 and above.
“According to the UN projections, Malaysia is expected to face an aging population around 2030 when the percentage of the population aged 60 and above reaches 15 percent of the total population,” Dr. Noor Hisham said in a statement here today.
Dr. Noor Hisham added, senior citizens are among the groups most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the country. The following is the current situation regarding COVID-19 for senior citizens.
He said, as of 30th September 2021, a total of 177,220 senior citizens (7.9 per cent) had been infected with the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 106 clusters involving senior citizens were reported. This involved a total of 3,598 COVID-19 positive cases including 220 deaths were reported in this cluster.
Dr. Noor Hisham also reported, in 2021 up to the 38th Epidemiological Week (ME), a total of 14,248 (56.6 per cent) COVID-19 death cases involving the elderly were reported. However, this trend is beginning to show a decline in line with the implementation of the COVID-19 2021 National Immunization Program (PICK).
However, the Director General added, as of 29th September 2021, a total of 3,148,438 (87.4 per cent) senior citizens have been fully vaccinated and a total of 3,365,443 (93.4 per cent) senior citizens have received at least one dose of vaccine. As of 26th September 2021, a total of 19,641 (66.8 per cent) residents and caregivers in care centres for the elderly had received a complete dose of the vaccine.
Vaccination efforts are ongoing to ensure that these high-risk groups are protected from COVID-19 infection.
Dr. Noor Hisham said, PICK phase 2 which began in April 2021 for the elderly and vulnerable groups have begun to show signs of its effectiveness. Statistics from Sungai Buloh Hospital showed a significant decrease in the admission of elderly patients to the hospital for categories 4 and 5 compared to adults aged 20 to 59 years.-MalaysiaWorld News
