Age is not a diagnosis

"Age is not a diagnosis. More seniors are living longer, challenging the authorities to think of new ways to use modern technology," Hans Olav Tungesvik pointed out during the opening of the telemedicine conference on Elder Health in the Future in Tromsø. Photo: Jan Fredrik Frantzen

Incomplete democracy

Without an active policy for elders within areas such as health, working life, politics and culture, we will make no progress at all. A recurring theme is the need to do something about the age composition of political parties and to give seniors greater influence in the corridors of power in Norway's parliament, the Storting.

"Of today's 169 members of the Norwegian Storting, only one is over 65. People over 60 have little influence in political forums. It is accepted as a fact that younger people should have the most important positions here in Norway. This means that we are in fact living in an incomplete democracy," Tungesvik believes.

More knowledge

The conference in Tromsø presents a wide range of technological possibilities for meeting the needs of the ever-growing proportion of elderly people people who need health assistance and care. Tungesvik emphasizes that greater knowledge about the use of technology is a prerequisite for enabling seniors to function in tomorrow's society.

"More and more elderly people have an understanding of computers and mobile telephones, and use such tools. But local initiatives to teach elders how to use technological innovations are of fundamental importance. Teaching and training must therefore be offered in municipal centres or libraries," he urges.

At home as long as possible

The trend is that we want to live as long as possible in our own homes. This is a challenge to the way that the health service is organized, but it also creates opportunities for innovation.

"Fewer people are living in institutions now than a decade ago. At the same time, this has not reduced the need for help from the health and care service. It is the way that we provide the health service that must change," Tungesvik points out, highlighting geriatrics and rehabilitation as neglected specialities in Norway today.

For more information, please contact the Head of Information, Hilde Pettersen, mobile telephone +47 991 03 794.

Facts about TTeC 2007:

The Tromsø Telemedicine and eHealth Conference takes place from 11 to 13 June 2007. This is the seventh time that the Norwegian Centre for Telemedicine in Tromsø is organizing the conference, which gathers several hundred participants from 20 countries over three days. This year's conference focuses on new, non-traditional possibilities for improving the efficiency of the care service and reducing the burden on the public health service when the grey wave begins in earnest within a few years.