International Day of Elderly persons, observed on October 1, dedicated to honor, respect and care for the world’s elderly. It’s observed to reaffirm the commitment of promoting the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedom by older persons as endorsed by Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 70 years ago.
I MBBS students of Gulf Medical University organized the event with the aim to promote the awareness about the rights enshrined to Senior Citizens in the UDHR and the challenges hindering the progress of ensuring full rights and fundamental freedoms by older persons. The topics like elderly abuse and its impact, contributions of elder people in society, different services provided to them by UAE government were also discussed. The interactive games such as the wheelchair race, the whisper challenge, see to show and quiz were also conducted, all aligned with the aim of promoting awareness
“Provide opportunities to elderly as their roles in society remain vital even after retirement. Their knowledge and experience represent a rich legacy for the younger generation” said Dr.Radhika Taroor Supervisor of the event.
“This event made me realize and appreciate the contribution of my elders. Also working for this project helped me overcome the fear of public speaking”, says Tala Alsyouti.
“It made me realize that grown up without grandparents, I have missed a lot” reflected Armaan Sujay Kantawala.
“There were many skills I have learned from this event like organize, manage, face challenges, team work with more effective solutions and control my time to do a task. I also had a variety of information and facts about elderly people now. It was an overall great experience for us as future doctor”, states Rahmah Abdul Naser Awadh Yaslam.
The Dean, Prof. Manda Venkatramana, congratulated the students for their involvement in this important community engagement and honoring the elderly.
