The Village of Elders by Aidan Hogan

Open your eyesto the clean white walls of the bathroom.You were born herejust moments ago.

You cry out for your motherand continue to do so for weeks.For months, even.

You become accustomed to the scarlet, floral patternsthat filter in that drowsy glow,when you are made to leave.The transition isn’t easy.

But that was years agoand you’re a big boy now,thriving in a den of your own.

As the card collections and robotic toys grow,so too do you.You don’t know why the floor must be tidy,but you keep Mum and Dad happy for now.

Televisions are getting bigger and bigger,as are the sessions that you spend in front of it.Your mother tells you to spend less time in this room,but you like it here.You feel secure in the warm heart of your home.

The kitchen is your favourite room though,that’s where all the the good stuff is hidden.You quickly learn that the best way to get treatsis to help bake them.Every recipe is a new adventure.

School used to be the placewhere you met your friends, but now they just hang out online.The perfect reason to never leave your room,I suppose.

As the pride fades and security grows,your room becomes a sanctuary.Nobody can hurt you here.School drags you kicking and screamingfrom your bubble,as it turns out,they can hurt you there.

After another hard day,your front door’s green glow welcomes you home,relief flooding your senses asyou pass through its threshold.

Outside you are venerable,but inside,you are home.

Aidan Hogan

Home

Institution

Lucius Burckhardt defines an institution as “a network of relationships… the

legal principles, patterns of behaviour, and expectations with which people are

confronted.” For Burckhardt, the difference between a building and an institution is

that a building is defined by its physical space, whereas an institution is defined by

the activity taking part inside.

A school is an example of an institution. A school is not defined by the physical set

up of the building itself, but instead by the teaching that takes place inside of the

building. If a school were to be demolished and the teachers and students were taken

to a different site, it could still be defined as the same school, because it can still be

defined by the teaching that takes place in the same way.

Similarly, the family home could also be viewed as an institution. Normally in a

housing estate each home will follow one design, which is then replicated throughout

the entire area. However, not one of these homes is the same. Each is defined by the

family that dwells inside. There is a reason that a visitor will go to number six and

not number four - when visiting a family home, you are looking for the family - if you

were looking for the home, you could go to any one of its replicas.

Ageing and Isolation

It is difficult to deconstruct the concept of age into different stages. Shakespeare

attempts this in the poem, “Seven Ages of Man,” illustrating seven stages that life can

be broken into: infant, schoolboy, lover, soldier, justice, lean and slipper’d pantaloon,

and second childishness and mere oblivion. Interestingly, Shakespeare divides the

prime categories of childhood, adulthood and elderhood into more detail, identifying

the changes shown in all of these walks of life.

Where Shakespeare breaks elderhood into two categories of self sufficiency and

dependence, one could argue that the analysis could go deeper. Breaking elderhood

into the following five stages, allows us to fully analyse the requirements of each

unique individual: independence, interdependence, stand-by assistance, full-time

carer, residency.

Dr. Jill M. Burke outlines the issues of social isolation in the elderly, “Social isolation

can develop when living at home causes a lack of communication with others. This

results in the senior feeling lonely due to the loss of contact or companionship, as

well as a deficit of close and genuine communication with others. It also can be the

self-perception of being alone even when one is in the company of other people.”

The way that the elderly health system is currently set up in the UK, whilst sufficient

care is provided to sustain their life, it dismisses their need to thrive. At every other

age, life is designed around flourishing in our homes, so why, when we reach old age,

does it become about surviving?

The main issue is retirement. Once the distraction of the career is gone, the elderly

struggle to find a genuine and meaningful purpose in their life. When they start

relying on a carer to complete mundane activities, the eldery become trapped in their

own homes, with little opportunity to communicate with others.

Tribal Culture

The tribal response to elderly members of society vary, depending on the situation

and background of the clan. There are a number of different factors that affect the

approach taken in regards to the deterioration of the elderly.

Anthony Glascock’s research revealed that killing of the aged was found in about

one-fifth of his samples taken from different tribes around the world. Nonsupportive

treatment refers to the conscious act of discouraging someone to live. Various forms

of this approach was found in 84 percent of the societies.

Death-hastening is the encouragement of death in order to benefit yourself. In

traditional Inuit clans, the practice of senicide was not uncommon. The Inuit

clans were able to justify the severe approach, through the belief in reincarnation,

believing the elderly were born again as their grandchildren, who would be given the

same name. Often the abandonment would be a test, to see how self sufficient the

elder was. If they manage to find the clan again, they prove their worth.

On the other hand, in some West African tribes, Elders would be treasured as the

gatekeepers of the tribe’s rituals and history. The elderly would be seen as valuable

banks of knowledge that should be protected, and would often be trusted as more

suitable leaders than the younger warriors.

In his research, Glascock concluded that there is no single approach to the elderly,

usually both supportive and nonsupportive treatment will coexist in the same society.

As each member is affected differently, a very objective approach is normally taken.

If the elder is of value, he receives the support required, but if the tribe agree that his

worth has been exhausted, a more nonsupportive method will be initiated.

Dementia Village

De Hogeweyk is a commune designed specifically for people suffering with

Dementia. It takes the idea that the pain caused by Dementia is due unfamiliar and

unsuited conditions. The village provides a safe and familiar place for the patients,

whilst also offering the care essential to their condition.

Dementia sometimes causes the urge to move, so the complex encloses a large

outdoor space, where the residents are free to roam. Where living in an enclosed

space tends to make patients feel locked in, the wide free roam spaces give a sense of

freedom, and with all the necessary facilities on site, the patients will never feel like

they have to leave. The supermarket in the complex provides a unique service where

the residents do not pay for the shopping - it is paid at a later date by the carer, who

can also return any items bought in confusion. There are also restaurants, cafes and

a theatre so residents are able to participate in social situations as they would in the

real world. The freedom that is offered to the patients is proved to be beneficial to

both their mental and physical health, due to the exercise and social possibilities.

Because this ‘fake reality’ is created, the carers are able to complete their usual tasks

without having to explain to the patients that they live in a care home, as dementia

patients usually struggle with short term memory. The institution has an ethical

stance where, if asked directly, the nurses are to explain their situation to them.

Proposal - The Village of Elders

The Village of Elders is an extension on the ideas that led to the Dementia Village,

De Hogeweyk. It is a commune that operates as both a care home and a community.

Its voluntary and flexible nature allows the system to adapt to the individual need

of each person. The design aims to integrate elders of all ages, backgrounds and

different stages of care into a care home facility that, like at De Hogeweyk, does not

cause the members to feel trapped.

People that participate in the activities in the Village of Elders are referred to as

members, because they are not necessarily residents or patients. Their participation

is encouraged from the moment they retire, up to the final stages of their life. A

token system is implemented to encourage this participation, allowing the elder to

start paying their way into the care facilities, when they are no longer self-sufficient,

by taking part in different activities. The elders are encouraged to live with their

children at the early stages, minimising their time spent in dependent care.

An Exemplar Life in the Village of Elders

Mary retires at the age of 65. She was a school teacher, living in a cottage in Hassocks, West Sussex, but when her husband dies, her eldest daughter Matilda offers her a room in their family home in Horley.

After living with Matilda for a few months, Mary has made friends with Evelyn who lives a few houses away. Evelyn tells Mary about a place she goes to most weekdays, “The Village of Elders” - a commune dedicated to the care and social wellbeing of the elderly. Mary is sceptical at first as she thinks of herself as quite independent, but Evelyn assures her that it is a social event, rather than a care home.

The next morning, Mary meets Evelyn at the bus stop, just a short 5 minute walk from her house. The distance to the village is short, but the journey take about 25 minutes as the driver travels around Horley, picking up around 10 other pensioners. The bus pulls into a drive, with the name of the village on either side, pulling up next to a contemporary, steel and glass building - the reception. Here she signs some forms and is given a list of activities that are occuring on that day. It is explained that certain labour activities offer tokens as a reward system, which can be saved up and used to pay for residency if and when it is required in the future.

Over the following few weeks, Mary participates in Bingo, a boules tournament, watches a play and goes to a church service, as well as doing some gardening and helping out in the nursery to gain some tokens.

Mary attends the Village of Elders most weeks for the next few years of her life. Getting out of the house keeps her young and she enjoys seeing both new and old faces around the village. She has started seeing a nurse twice a week, who checks her health and helps her with documentation and online banking. They speak about getting a part-time nurse to help Mary at home.

A few years pass and it is clear that Mary is in a decline. The part-time nurse is nearly full-time, often looking after Mary from 9am to 7pm when Matilda gets home. They decide it is time that Mary needed full-time care.

The transition to residency in the Village is easy. Mary spends most of her time there anyway and already knows her doctor, nurse and the majority of her neighbours. Matilda visits once or twice a week with the children. Mary looks forward to showing her grandchildren the garden she helped grow when she first started.

An Easy Transition

When dependence becomes a full time requirement, it usually becomes necessary for the

pensioner to be moved to a care home. This transition is often difficult, as it can be perceived

as abandonment. The Village of Elders provides a friendly and familiar setting that each

member can become accustomed to, before taking up residency. By the time it comes to move

in, they will already know the setting, staff and residents well enough to feel comfortable.

An Economic Bonus

The village will not only offer jobs that give the elderly meaning and purpose, but will also

bring plenty of business opportunity to others. It provides an opening for entrepreneurs

to start up a business, with reduced labour costs. Also, jobs assisting with the care and

maintenance in the village will also made available to the local area. With the opportunity to

grow with its success, the potential is huge.

Living at Home

The system encourages the elderly to live with their

children in order to reinstate the family institution.

It also makes it easier for their family to take care of

them, by offering a flexible service that offers both

part-time and full-time care. Encouraging the elders to

be self-sufficient makes them easier to care for in the

long run.

Prolonged Youth

By keeping the Elderly social and physically active, their

health will naturally improve. Most deterioration of health

comes from a lack of exercise in the brain or body. This is the

reason that health in the elderly declines at different rates.

Dr Nick Cavill explains, “As people get older and their

bodies decline in function, physical activity helps to slow

that decline, it’s important they remain active or even

increase their activity as they get older.” Activities offered

by the Village of Elders, such as Lawn Mowing or Boules

Tournaments are strenuous enough to get the heart beating

and, thus, contribute towards the healthy lifestyle required to

slow the decline in their health.

The idea is to stimulate each member mentally and physically

to encourage a healthy lifestyle and give purpose to their

daily routine. Once retired, the elderly normally have no

goals or aspiration, just a will to survive. By using the token

reward system, each member of the commune has a goal to

be working towards in their day-to-day life. Relationships

that grow because of this work will seem more genuine and

meaningful, because the member will feel valued.