ABSTRACT
There are, indeed, significant problems that need to be recorded, for as ageing takes place, the self-conceptions of people begin to change as they become increasingly aware of their declining ability and competency, also other psychological changes such as a decrease in enthusiasm, changed sleeping patterns and heightened caution and mental illness. Family attitudes towards old age that the elderly must deal with, including degradation of status in the community, problems of isolation, loneliness, and the generation gap; these are the prominent areas resulting in socio-psychological frustration among the elderly. Present-day lifestyles have brought about a distinct change in the mindsets of people who earlier used to regard Centres for Senior Citizens (I prefer not to address them as Old-Age Homes) as facilities where seniors were dumped by their families simply to put ‘days into their lives’ and to live out what was left of their days. Times have changed, and such institutions are now considered as facilities where seniors can live their lives to the full, putting ‘life into their days.’ This change has been brought about as adults and parents today remain very busy in providing financial stability for their families, leaving elders in their families alone most of the time, creating concerns in their minds about their security as well as loneliness. It is thus that the concept of creating Centres for Senior Citizens who were mentally alert and physically agile came to fruition in our Parsi community in the late 1990s.
