UN expert urges choice and autonomy for older people needing care

At a UN Third Committee meeting on 7 October, independent expert Zvezdan Pirtošek urged governments to ensure that older people who need care can still make decisions about their own lives. He warned that labelling someone “dependent” can lead others to treat them as a person to be managed rather than someone who can act and participate. [1]

Pirtošek said support systems should ask older people what they want, not only what they need. He also argued that families and informal caregivers cannot be treated as an unlimited source of care, particularly when women do a disproportionate share of unpaid work. Losing the ability to choose how to live, or moving into an institution, should not be seen as an inevitable part of ageing, he said. [1]