Respect for the Aged Day 2022

Respect for the Aged Day is a Japanese public holiday which is celebrated on the third Monday of September every year. The holiday is a time for people to reflect upon the contributions the older generations have made to society and family life. It’s also a time to celebrate with the local elderly community and of course, family. Local school children visit care homes and write to residents, many people visit elderly relatives and those who can’t, call or send gifts to express their gratitude.

Why Respect for the Aged Day matters to us

Since its formation in the 1980s, Private Homecare Ireland, a Cpl company, has been taking care of Ireland’s elderly population. Elder care is part of their ethos and baked into everything they do, “we care for others as we would like to be cared for ourselves”.

When Cpl was acquired by Japanese group Outsourcing (OSI) in 2020, Elizabeth Nicholson, Managing Director at Private Homecare naturally saw a synergy between Homecare and the culture of its new Japanese partners.

As a way of bringing the care, respect, and recognition both groups have for the elderly together Elizabeth spoke with the OSI team in Tokyo about both cultures’ norms around the treatment of the elderly.

In both cultures, it is normal for elderly people to go into care homes if they become sick or cannot live by themselves. Recently, Japan has started to recognise the importance of private care homes and many local governments have strengthened home care measures, and many retirees have begun to receive lifestyle, health, and medical support even at home, such as a nursing care service for people living alone.

Private Homecare Ireland offers an array of similar services to its clients here in Ireland, including everything from companionship for walks or shopping to 24/7 care.

As our population begins to age, we really do need to ask ourselves, what will the future of elderly care look like in Ireland?

Nowadays in Ireland, old age is not usually seen as a defined number; it is a measurement of a person’s capability to look after themselves. Many people live very active lives well into their eighties and beyond. And including them in the future conversation on Homecare is essential, especially when you remember we were all young once.

Is there an older person in your life who you would like to honour? To celebrate “Respect for the Aged” on Monday September 19th next, we invite you to nominate any older person in your life, and tell us why. This person could be a family member, a friend, a neighbour, a client or anyone else you know. Whilst it will be difficult to choose, we will select 5 people from all nominees for whom an oak tree will be planted in their name. The oak tree is a symbol of wisdom, strength and endurance, so this is fitting as well as environmentally friendly. Each person who nominates the 5 selected older people to honour, will win €50*.

Please note that nominators and nominees should be willing to share their stories and photographs for Private HomeCare marketing. Nominees must work for Private HomeCare or the Cpl Group at the time of nomination and on September 19th 2022.

Please email your nominations (story and photo) to [email protected] by September 15th 2022. 

*Terms and Conditions Apply