Caring for the cared-for starts with the caregiver

Conveying the power of emotion, opening up for shared learning

In 2018, Taiwan entered an aging society, and the term "elderly care" is familiar to everyone. Taiwan is expected to step into a super-aged society by 2026. In response to the wave of aging, government agencies have proposed many long-term care-related policies, hoping to lay a more comprehensive care service foundation for Taiwan's elderly society. As part of a top university, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) not only has a solid academic foundation and comprehensive medical resources, but NCKU's affiliated hospital is also expected to launch Taiwan's first elderly hospital in 2025. The social responsibility of "elderly care" education is imperative for NCKU. However, nursing staff are often not the front-line staff in the general elderly care field. On the contrary, in daily life, family members and caregivers are the groups that spend the most time with those being cared for. The care of the elderly is not entirely dependent on medical staff. Family members or caregivers must learn what "care" really means. Therefore, for the public (such as relatives and friends of the elderly) and care workers (such as migrant workers and general caregivers), basic training courses related to elderly care are becoming increasingly important. In light of this, NCKU's Office of Academic Affairs has specially planned and recorded a series of digital courses titled "Long-term Care Academy," including topics like the care of delirium and dementia, assessment of maintaining physical activity functions, elderly fall prevention, basic concepts and principles of self-support, medication safety for the elderly, incontinence care for the elderly, and designing health promotion plans for the elderly. Currently, Southeast Asian migrant workers are the main labor source for caregivers. To avoid language barriers and improve care quality, this series of courses has been translated into five languages (Chinese, English, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indonesian) to facilitate migrant workers' learning and benefit those being cared for and their families. The goal is to share resources and inspire further initiatives.