International Day of Older Persons

 

Wednesday 1 October is International Day of Older Persons.

 

Older people bring with them a lifetime of experience, skills and practical knowledge, and these attributes can make them resilient to fire emergencies and disasters. However, older people are disproportionately affected by disasters and often experience higher fatality rates compared with younger populations.

In Australia, people aged 65 years and older are 12.8 times more likely to die from weather-related events (including heatwave) than the general population. Older people are also at disproportionate risk of being affected by fire. 

It’s not age alone that makes older people more vulnerable – it’s the factors associated with advancing age such as impaired physical mobility, diminished sensory awareness, pre-existing health conditions, as well as social and economic constraints.

We have an ageing population in Australia and it is growing. The number of people aged 65 and over increased by 32 per cent between 2013 and 2023. Also, the number of older people receiving care at home increased more than fourfold – from 57,000 to 258,000 people over this 10-year period. This trend is continuing to rise each year in Victoria.

In terms of home fire fatalities, 36 per cent of nationwide fatalities between 2003 and 2017 were aged 65 and older. This pattern continues.

The My Aged Care providers, who deliver in-home support, are in a unique and trusted position because they work inside the homes of people at higher risk from fire. 

CFA has recognised this important link and we recognise that people who can’t prepare and respond quickly and effectively are at higher risk from fire. Since 2019 we have invested more in programs to upskill and engage the care workforce.

The CFA Community Engagement team works to improve how we engage and connect with older people and their informal and formal supports through:

• Partnerships at a state level with National Disability Services, Ageing Australia, VCOSS and COTA (Council on the Ageing) Australia
• Advocacy to My Aged Care at a national level in partnership with FRV  
• Online training for support workers and carers
• In-person engagement at expos, conferences and events such as Ageing Well Expo with the FRV At-Risk Groups team
• Direct engagement with older people, carers and formal providers and people who contact CFA for support.

CFA volunteers also deliver a smoke alarm installation service for people at higher risk, installing 2,680 smoke alarms in 1,047 households across Victoria last financial year. CFA targets the service to older people through follow-up visits from fire safety sessions with community groups, referrals from support services, and brigade members’ local community knowledge.

A recent survey of community members who had received the smoke alarm installation service showed that 92 per cent of recipients were aged 65 or older.

CFA members can play a role locally to help older people by:

• promoting the online learning modules and resources to their local care providers and carers
• engaging local care and health providers so they know who to contact locally at CFA
• attending a local disability and/or seniors expo or event to engage people about fire safety.

Deputy Chief Officer Brett Boatman

 

Submitted by	Deputy Chief Officer Brett Boatman