Embracing and supporting people as they age

Amid a lot of discussion about public figures’ aging, the community outreach director for the Medical University of South Carolina’s Center for Healthy Aging is speaking out about age discrimination. 

“Age discrimination is wrong. It's unethical. It’s no different than discriminating about spiritual beliefs or the color of your skin. It’s categorizing a population and saying that once you are a certain age, you aren’t contributing to society,” said Heather Boger, Ph.D.

 

Boger, a neuroscientist and a professor in the College of Medicine, is not weighing in on whether anyone is fit anyone is fit to serve in a leadership role or public office. What she is saying is that we should help as needed and learn from people as they age.

“In our society, we don't revere our seniors like a lot of societies do. Instead, we put on labels and say they're too old; they can't do their job. In a perfect world, we should be supporting our older adults and learning from them.”

Boger said some people stereotype the aging. “Such as the notion that everybody that's over 65 just sits in front of a TV watching soap operas and eating bonbons all afternoon. And they're all old and cranky.”

But in reality, everybody ages differently, Boger said. “Regardless of age, everyone should be treated with respect and dignity, and it should be our jobs as the younger generation to foster relationships with our older adults to keep everybody as engaged as they want to be in society. And we don't do that as much as other nations do. It’s sad and unfortunate.”

Interacting with older people can give younger people a better perspective on life, Boger said. They may have lived through World War II, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War or other important moments in history. 

“I feel like people are just listening to the here and now and not utilizing our older generations that went through really significant events,” Boger said.

Boger leads the Senior Mentor program at MUSC for medical students. In a country where the number of people 65 and older is projected to almost double by 2050, she said it’s important for everyone to get comfortable with the idea of aging. Her program pairs students with senior mentors, older people who live in the area, to get to know them and their needs.

Her advice for anyone about interacting with older people: “Take the time and engage. Talk to someone. Because no matter what you talk about, it’s going to make a difference in your life and their life. You never know the knowledge you can gain from someone unless you take the time, sit with them and listen…truly listen and take in what they have to say,” Boger said.

“Their experiences are things that nobody else will ever experience. And there's just a lot to be learned from, as we call them, our greatest generation.”