ADDING LIFE TO YEARS
ANNUAL REPORT 2002-03
FOREWORD
Chief Medical Officer
We are privileged to live in an era when more people than ever before in history are living into old age. As we age, we want to continue to play our part, and we continue to need access to the opportunities and services which enable us to do so. Health services play a key part in supporting an active and fulfilled old age by helping people.
This report builds on the document Adding Life to Years published in 2002 by the Expert Group on the Healthcare of Older People, dealing with the work being done throughout Scotland to ensure that older people have the health and care services they need. This report reviews progress, identifies promising developments and looks beyond health care to the wider set of policies which support active ageing.
The Executive is committed to a better life for older people in Scotland, now and in the future, to supporting older people to live healthy independent lives, to promoting positive attitudes towards ageing, to valuing older people and to supporting them in continuing to contribute to Scottish society. These are priorities now because of the impact they will have on the future of people across the whole of Scotland.
We are rebuilding and reforming the NHS in Scotland to ensure it provides the health care that individuals need, when they need it. Treating people as individuals who are not defined by their age is an essential part of that process of reform. But the most important determinant of our future health is the choice we make as individuals. Whether we are young or old we can all weight the odds in our favour. We can help ourselves stay healthy now and in the future by stopping smoking, eating well, drinking in moderation and keeping physically and mentally active.
This is the first report since Adding Life to Years was published, in parallel with the Information and Statistics Division report The Health and Well-being of Older People in Scotland - insights from national data, and the results of a specially commissioned MORI survey Public Attitudes to the Healthcare of Older People in Scotland. Publication of this report is linked to, and reflects the discussions at, the first national conference exploring the main themes of that report. Together, they provide an opportunity for all the interests involved in the preparation of Adding Life to Years to maintain their participation in these issues, and for voices of older people themselves to continue to be heard.
DR E M ARMSTRONG
December 2003