Origin

The World Health Organization defines an “elderly country” as one with 7% or greater population aged at 65 or above. According to the statistics provided by the Taiwanese Ministry of the Interior, Taiwan has formally become an “aging society” with 7.1% of its total population aged over 65 by the end of 1993. Today, Taiwan’s elderly population accounts for 10%, which will reach 19.7% by the end of 2031 as provided by the CEPD. In other words, there will be one elder in every five people by that time.

The rapid increase in the elder population and its associated health care demands are serious issues that require our immediate attention and careful planning.

Similar to other developed nation, an elder population is an inevitable global trend, which delineates an improved quality of life and progress in medicinal advancement. It will now takes Taiwan only another 26 years to attain an elder population of 14%, making Taiwan one of the fastest aging nations in the world.

Aging within a population is a vital issue that affects all strata of a society. The issue of an aged elder population is a social responsibility. The health care expenses required by the elders are much more than that of younger people. As the population of the elders increases, medical staffs will face more elders and inadequate patients with age-related diseases; thus, the field of geriatrics and gerontology becomes an important discipline with growing significance.

In this International Conference, we will arrange speakers on topics of nursing, emergency procedures, and related lectures of the elders. In addition to clinical and fundamental sciences, it would also be a great opportunity to exchange experience and knowledge on elder emergency cares. Current advances in medicinal technology will also be another focus during the lectures. We sincerely look forward that all our participants will enjoy interesting, meaningful, and fruitful sessions in this conference.