Japan's Missing Elderly Exposes Global Social Problems

When we reach the age when we can no longer take care of ourselves, who will be there at our sides? Will is be our children, our spouse, or a social system ( A need, of which, is created by a lack of the former two.) that is already stretched to a breaking point?

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A Japanese media frenzy over missing centenarians has cast a spotlight on the isolation and loneliness potentially faced by millions of elderly as the government struggles to cope with a rapidly graying population.

The panic - and guilt - was sparked by the discovery that a man believed Tokyo's oldest male at 111 had actually been dead for over 30 years with his remains found mummified at his home. His family is under investigation for fraud.

Since then authorities have been unable to locate over 250 elderly people and reports have emerged of many old people dying alone, or of relatives running scams to get their pensions amid broken communities and overworked public volunteers.

"I can't picture a situation where I wouldn't know her whereabouts. Perhaps the breakdown of family ties is the cause of the recent happenings," said Akiyama, holding the hand of her frail, 107-year-old, bed-ridden mother-in-law.

While Akiyama may show the respect for the elderly that many see as a traditional Japanese value, families are changing and the elderly are no longer automatically cared for by their family.

One-third of Japan's growing ranks of elderly are expected to be living alone by 2020 due to a fast-aging population and more divorces.

"Until recently, nuclear families were central to Japanese society but now people living alone are replacing this household model," said Akio Doteuchi of NLI Research Institute.

That means a new system is needed to replace traditional home care, Doteuchi said in a recent report.

The need is even greater as Japan battles with too few nursing homes and ballooning healthcare costs.

While cities are having trouble keeping track of their elderly, the problem is less acute in rural areas where social ties often remain strong.

Is this happening in the United States? Has our preoccupation with our own selfish desires led us away from what truly matters? At what point will the demands on our social system force it to start leaving people behind? How important do you think family is to you? More importantly, do you show it?

(ORIGINAL LINK) Japan's hunt for missing elderly exposes social woes - Yahoo! News