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Fiona Sun

Nearly 90 per cent of elderly residents and carers from ethnic minority backgrounds in Hong Kong have never used government support services, a survey has found, with some respondents citing language barriers as a hurdle.
The Hong Kong Christian Service shared the survey results on Wednesday after conducting the poll between last November and April this year.
The charity also called on the city to provide more support for the growing elderly population among local ethnic minority communities.
The poll interviewed 200 residents aged 60 and over, as well as 50 carers, with the respondents including people of Nepalese, Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi and Thai origin.
According to the survey, 87.6 per cent of respondents had never used government services for the elderly, such as designated centres, community and home-based care, as well as residential care.
Only 10 per cent of interviewees said they had successfully received such support.
Some respondents attributed difficulties seeking help to language barriers, while others said the offered services did not match their needs because of religious or cultural differences.
Jackie Chan Chi-wai, supervisor of the charity’s centre for research and development, said: “Most of the ethnic minority elderly residents and carers have never used mainstream elderly centre services and more than half of the carers lack confidence in the services, with language as the main barrier.”
Official figures showed that the number of residents aged 65 and above from ethnic minority groups in Hong Kong increased from 9,910 to 25,792 between 2011 and 2021.
Chan said that with limited use of the available services, residents from ethnic minority groups looking after elderly family members faced huge caregiving pressure.
The survey also asked carers to rate how much they felt depended upon on a 10-point scale, with half giving a score of eight to 10.
Some said they spent a minimum of six hours each day handling caregiving tasks.
The carers also showed a lack of confidence in support services for the elderly, with more than half giving scores of one to five on a 10-point scale.
“Elderly people are highly dependent and require long-term care services such as being escorted, day care and household cleaning,” Chan said.

Nanda Gurung, a 33-year-old homemaker of Nepalese origin, said she faced mounting pressure when taking care of her two young children and elderly parents-in-law, all with little help.
She needed to accompany her in-laws on regular hospital visits as they suffered from chronic conditions including diabetes and high blood pressure, while looking after her children at home by helping them with things such as their school work, she added.
Gurung said she had to ask friends for help sometimes, but her in-laws felt uncomfortable with such arrangements.
Gurung, who speaks Nepali and only knows a little English, said she was unaware of relevant government services as information on official websites was only in Chinese and English.
“I feel very helpless,” she said.
The homemaker said services such as day care and nursing homes for the elderly would help, and urged authorities to employ more South Asian staff at centres or offer interpretation services.
Viola Tsang Yuen-kei, head of the charity’s active ageing and community care service, called for authorities to train and foster awareness among social service providers about the needs of elderly residents and carers from ethnic minority backgrounds.
She also urged the government to boost support measures for service providers.
Tsang added that the government and service providers should provide information in multiple languages across different forms and channels, as well as offer straightforward translations, to help tackle language barriers.
The Social Welfare Department said it provided additional resources to designated centres to engage ethnic minority “district ambassadors” who helped to offer interpretation and translation services, organise programmes and activities, arrange visits, and promote community support services for the elderly.
It said information about welfare services, including those for the elderly and their carers, was available in eight different languages on the department’s website as well as through a 24-hour hotline.
The department also said it had commissioned non-governmental organisations to run three outreach teams for members of ethnic minorities to connect with mainstream welfare services.
The Hong Kong Christian Service runs a “Support to Ethnic Elderly Project” that offers outreach, social and recreational activities, as well as mutual support services.
The project also helps elderly residents from ethnic minority backgrounds apply for services such as care centres for the elderly, and was later expanded to include carers as well.
The charity said the project has helped nearly 1,000 people since it launched in 2016.


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Hong Kong society

88% of ethnic minority elderly, carers have never used Hong Kong support services

Hong Kong’s ethnic minority communities are facing an increasingly ageing population. Photo: Nora Tam

According to the poll, carers also showed a lack of confidence in support services for the elderly, with more than half of them giving scores of one to five on a 10-point scale. Photo: Edward Wong

Hong Kong’s elderly ‘No 1 priority’ as welfare chief reveals new measures being studied amid string of tragedies

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun. Photo: Edmond So

Elderly residents account more than a fifth of Hong Kong’s population. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Proportion of elderly Hongkongers struggling with moderate or severe loneliness almost doubles since 2018, study finds

Experts have urged society to place greater importance on tackling the rising number of elderly people feeling lonely. Photo: Jelly Tse

The survey also finds that the proportion of elderly people who experience moderate or severe feelings of loneliness has risen from 35.3 per cent to 68.3 per cent. Jelly Tse

News

Hong Kong

Society

Poll from Hong Kong Christian Service also finds some respondents attribute lack of service use to language barriers


Poll from Hong Kong Christian Service also finds some respondents attribute lack of service use to language barriers.
