High-school student with resident at St Basil’s Home Source: SBS
The proportion of Australians over age 65 is expected to grow rapidly over the next few decades, jumping from just over three million now to more than eight million by 2050. In response, the residential aged-care sector is also expected to grow to meet the needs of those who cannot live independently. Isolation can be a problem for some residents, and volunteer groups often provide the companionship. Some of those volunteers are school students, and there is a push now for more to be done to bring together the very young and the very old.
The proportion of Australians over age 65 is expected to grow rapidly over the next few decades, jumping from just over three million now to more than eight million by 2050. In response, the residential aged-care sector is also expected to grow to meet the needs of those who cannot live independently. Isolation can be a problem for some residents, and volunteer groups often provide the companionship. Some of those volunteers are school students, and there is a push now for more to be done to bring together the very young and the very old.
