ENUGU- Prof Uzoma Okoye, University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) has emphasized the need to establish Adult Day Care to give old people the required care and attention they needed to live longer.
Okoye, a professor of Social Work in the UNN made the call in Nsukka on Thursday while delivering the university’s 195th Inaugural Lecture tilted “Aging PLC :A business where Everyone is a shareholder but not aware. Can Social Work Help?”
According to her, there is the need to establish Adult Day Care just as Children Day Care to give old people the required care and attention they needed to live longer.
“Some people may say Adult Day Care or Old People’s Homes is not part of our culture in this part of the world but we must adapt with the changing world realities,” she said.
Okoye, who was the first professor in the Social Work Department to present an inaugural lecture in the university, urged Nigerians to support aging business “since everybody is a shareholder”.
She said that aging PLC is a limited liability company where every Nigeria and those yet unborn are shareholders but not aware.
“Unfortunately, this aging PLC is not business where you have option to be shareholders or not, as everybody is a shareholder.
“Why it’s imperative to support aging people is because whether you like it or not, you start aging right from the day you were born.
“Unlike other companies where there are board members giving the authority to run the company but in aging PLC, everyone is a board member,” she said.
She said that findings from her PhD research work revealed that attitude, stigma and assumptions about aging were heavily embedded within social cognition.
“It’s generally believed by Nigerians that age come with inevitable physical and cognitive decay.
“With this attitude to the aged, some consider themselves as social burden and have strong sense of waiting for death.
“We should all put smiles on the faces of old people as a way of giving them sense of belonging as well as enable them to live longer,” she said.
The professor of Social Work tasked her department to take the responsibility of sensitising and educating Nigerians on the need to have use of Adult Day Care for older people to enable them to live longer for their families and the society.
“Students in Social Work department should take this as part of their responsibility in their service to humanity,” she said.
Okoye expressed special appreciation to her husband for his love, care and maximum support to her at all the time.
“My husband is the best husband in the world, if there is reincarnation I will marry him in my next world,”she said.
She also expressed appreciation to her family members, the university all and sundry who contributed in one way or the other to her growth in life.
In a remark, Prof Charles Igwe, the Vice-Chancellor of UNN said that the university’s inaugural lecture remained a very important lecture for professors.
Igwe said that the topic of Okoye’s lecture was unique and important as it made everyone to know that he or she was a shareholder in aging
business.
He commended her for presenting a lecture that would go a long way to promote care, love and longevity of old people in the society.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the inaugural lecture was attended by the UNN university community as well as people from different walks of life.
The highlight was presentation of inaugural certificate to Okoye by the vice chancellor. (NAN)
