Recently, the Zhangjiagang municipal bureau of civil affairs and Shanghai Nursing Care, China’s first professional service company that provides various integrative services to care for the elderly, signed an agreement to co-construct a professional platform for elderly care services.

As a professional service platform for elderly care founded in 2006, Shanghai Nursing Care, also called Nanxin Kaier, is comprised of domestic and international professional consultative service companies for elderly care, companies of professional institutions for elderly care, suppliers and distributors specializing in professional elderly care equipment, and hundreds of professional senior care advisers. The platform is the first professional service company in China that provides integrative services including professional consultation about elderly care service, institutional function design and planning, training and personnel output, institutional management operation, rehabilitation and nursing care service, and professional equipment supply. Since its establishment, the platform has provided service for many welfare institutions in China's Yangtze River Delta region, welcoming 1,200 institutions as members. It is also helping governments at all levels complete more than 100 construction, renovation and expansion projects with a total investment of over 30 million yuan ($4.9 million).

After signing the cooperation agreement, Zhangjiagang will focus on implementation of projects such as the Zhangjiagang Elderly Service System Center and an evaluation system of elderly care services. The city hopes Nursing Care can provide comprehensive technical guidance for the construction of the elderly care service system and offer more fine service projects.

In addition, a home-based nursing service station for the elderly in Daxin town in Zhangjiagang started preparations for construction of a loving barbershop in February. The shop opened on February 24. The barbershop offers home services with Mr. Qin, an old man in a nearby community, as the hairdresser. Located in the home-based nursing service station for the elderly, the barbershop is very clean and has an area of over 10 square meters. Qin often chats with the elderly while expertly holding a pair of scissors. Old people can read newspapers, watch TV or gossip while they wait for haircuts. On opening day, over 10 people came to the barbershop. To improve the station’s service quality and expand service range, Daxin Community will host a series of activities including a weekend theater, a college for the elderly and a chess game, enabling the elderly to live in comfort and joy in their old age.