Socially Integrated Retirement Community - 1485 Words

Socially Integrated Retirement Community CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Life expectancy is steadily increasing, but cities are no longer safe nor friendly neighbors a certainty. Alternative housing for the aged is a practical lifestyle solution that developers are now ready to provide. The fading joint family system in India and other innumerable factors have given rise to west-inspired phenomena of old age homes. Surprising cost of living and scanty return on savings have almost pushed these senior citizens on roads. Such an act has triggered the security net of the helpless, which has almost vanished in many states in India with Kerala topping the list. Elders have started walking out of their own home in search of a journey that promises peace,†¦show more content†¦They want to live with dignity and, above all, want to be secure. Townships and residential colonies exclusively for senior citizens are now coming up in the state where they can relocate and spend the sunset of their lives without bothering about paying electricity bills, cooking and getting prompt medical care. It is this combination of physical and emotional satisfaction that today‘s retirement homes strive to provide. From an era where old-age homes were synonymous with charitable institutions for the indigent and orphaned elderly, we moved some years ago to the far more refined paid homes, where amenities were good and services like on-site medical check-ups and transport arrangements were provided. Now, retirement homes are set to enter a third phase of evolution. Socially Integrated Retirement Community 1.1 BACKGROUND – SENIOR CITIZENS IN INDIA Retirement communities are being pitched as a â€â€"lifestyle‘ choice for senior citizens who want to retain their independence. India‘s rising income levels, life expectancy and nuclear families are yielding a well-deserved bonanza for its senior citizens—retirement homes. This explains why more and more elderly individuals and couples are opting to move into retirement homes. Their growing popularity is because they offer a relatively stress-free existence, freedom from household chores, modern amenities, a safe environment and prompt help in case of medical emergencies. Although a relatively new concept in India,