Goa's ageing population becoming cause for concern

Holiday destination Goa, that is increasingly drawing retirees, is just "one or two" generations away from being a haven for geriatrics, top medical professionals warn.

Dropping fertility rates and the mortality odometer swinging opposite, its young workforce migrating away from its shores and the increasing trend of the state being a top destination for the country's retired and elderly appear to be only contributing to Goa's aging population.

The state would, in all likelihood, have to cater to a big volume of geriatric-related health issues just "one or two" generations down-line, according to leading oncologist Shekhar Salkar.

"In 1947, the average life-span was 47 for females and 57 for males in Goa. Today, we have crossed 70 for males and I am quite sure with another one or two generations, we will reach 75. One of the main health issues then will be geriatric care," Salkar told IANS.

"Goa is such a peaceful state that elderly people from all over India want to come to Goa and settle. That is why we have all this hype for real estate in Goa. That is because those people find comfort here and the temperature is reasonably good," he said, adding that the steady influx would only add to the number of the aged in the state.

Goa's aging population has been a concern expressed in the assembly, especially by Manohar Parrikar, who was the state's chief minister before he was elevated as India's defence minister last year.

The fertility rate in the state - the average number of children per woman in the 15-35 year age bracket - has shrunk from 2.1 to 1.7, according to official data. A fertility rate of 2.1 indicates a stable population, while anything below that suggests shrinking population growth.

Parrikar, in 2013, credited a successful birth control programme for the arrest in Goa's population growth with the caveat that in 15 years, the state's population "will be an aging one instead of youthful".

Parrikar's fears already find reflection in the 2011 census data, which ranks Goa second after Kerala as far as the proportion of the old dependent population above the age of 60 years is concerned, at 11.2 per cent. Incidentally, Goa also has the lowest proportional population within the 0-9 age-group.

With population trends suggesting Goa's rapid march towards an era of geriatry, facilities like the Manipal Hospital, India's third biggest chain of healthcare units in the country, is already gearing up for the demand by promoting home care services in Goa, the first of its kind in the state.

"In Goa, within a generation or two we will have geriatric-oriented problems. So we have prepared for that to ensure that the elderly population can be well looked after. Our home care section will be our main thrust," chief operating officer Gopal Devanhalli of Manipal Health Enterprises told IANS after launching the service earlier this week.

The service would involve home visits by technicians and nurses who will be linked through technology to medical professionals who will examine the patient by remote.

"This will ensure that you do not have to bring the patient to the hospital for every small blood pressure test or blood test," Devanhalli said.

(Mayabhushan Nagvenkar can be contacted at mayabhushan.n@ians.in)