The Department of Social Welfare says the number of applications it receives from people wanting to place elderly family members in homes is increasing.
Social Welfare director Rupeni Fatiaki said assessments showed many were capable of taking care of their older loved ones.
“Some of these families, they’re capable, they’re working, but I don’t know what would be the reason behind this,” he said.
He urged people to look after their older people. “We need to look after old people, we need to protect them. I mean, just think about all these years of sacrifices they made for us. “We need to be able to care for them, even in their old age.
“The State can come in and look after them but it’s not like living in a normal family environment.” He said it was important to consider older people’s psychological needs along with their physical needs.
He further said there was a need to implement legislation governing the protection and safety of older persons and they were working on this.
