Social organizations aim to slow decline among elderly

If you think coloring books are just for kids, think again.

A stack of them — designed for older people — rests quietly on a desk at a social organization incubation center in the Lixia district of Jinan, Shandong province, ready to be used. They are a gentle tool to help prevent cognitive decline.

The coloring books were created by Jinan's Ji'ai social work service center, an organization that has long focused on brain health and cognitive intervention for older adults.

"We regularly offer group cognitive training, sessions on adapting to community life, brain-boosting game workshops and home safety assessments, said Xu Feifei, secretary-general of the center. "We help seniors scientifically prevent dementia and protect their mental and brain health."

In Jinan, there is also an organization working to protect the elderly from financial scams. Targeting fraud and illegal fundraising, a local publicity team of elderly women has pioneered a path on which seniors help other seniors.

About one in three of the team members have personally fallen victim to pension scams, and their real life experiences provide authentic and persuasive material for their outreach effort.

Unlike traditional lecture-style legal education, the older women have turned their anti-fraud knowledge into drum performances, rhythmic chants and catchy rhymes. They've also created anti-fraud cartoons and themed display boards that make the information easy for older audiences to understand, remember and use.

So far, the team members have helped more than 300 elderly people learn how to avoid fraudulent transfers. They've helped the police shut down more than 10 pension fraud and illegal fundraising operations. And they've protected tens of millions of yuan in retirement savings.

The examples in Jinan are typical of how social organizations across China are thriving as they provide services for the elderly. As of the end of September, China had 779,800 social organizations, including 43,900 focused on elderly services. In addition, a large number of community-level social organizations are active in neighborhoods and villages nationwide, contributing to government efforts to address the problem of an increasingly older average population.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs noted the social efforts on Monday at a themed event in Jinan. The event, which was part of a series about people's livelihoods and heartwarming services, highlighted how social services benefit the public.

Social organizations across the country are deeply involved in elderly care, either by providing services directly or donating money and goods, said Liao Ming, deputy director of the ministry's Social Organization Management Bureau.

"They play an important role in meal assistance, home visits, psychological support and daytime care for seniors," he said.

Shandong has the largest elderly population in China. The province is home to 25.8 million people aged 60 and above, including 18.2 million over age, accounting, respectively, for 26 percent and 18 percent of its population. It also has 65,481 registered social organizations, second-most of all provinces.

Shandong has stepped up efforts to strengthen policy guidance and increase funding and project support to help social organizations become effective providers of elderly care services, said Wang Shushan, deputy director of the Shandong Department of Civil Affairs.