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EOC Chairperson urges greater support for carers in HK01 article
About two weeks ago, a heart-wrenching fire incident involving a father and son took place in the city. The son, the primary carer of his ailing father, was said to have murdered his father before setting the house on fire, also killing himself. The disturbing case is not an isolated incident. It is but another tragedy of caregiver burnout, when the burden of caring becomes too much and the carer feels so desperate and sees no other way out. It begs the question of whether our system has failed family carers, that they have no option but to take the extreme act of ending their loved one’s life.
In a recent article in his HK01 column, EOC Chairperson Ricky CHU Man-kin flagged up the issue of inadequate support for carers, which has reached crisis point, and called for immediate action. Mr Chu explained how the existing anti-discrimination ordinances, namely the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance, provide protection for people with caring responsibilities for their family members against discrimination in various public domains. Yet beyond legislation, what is needed, as Mr Chu stressed, is the formulation of a comprehensive carer policy.
The EOC has indeed been advocating for a strengthened policy in multiple submissions to the Government and public arena. Other recommended measures include increasing the number of places for respite care services at day care centres and residential care homes, which are crucial for relieving the stress of carers.
As Mr Chu puts it in the article, “Caregiving is an important public health issue, as it affects the wellbeing of not just the carers, but also the ones they care for”. Supporting carers is everyone’s business. Whether as an employer, a HR manager devising work policies or as someone who knows a carer, we can all play a part and give carers the support – both practical and emotional – that they need to ensure that their loved ones are cared for.
