Family values

When I visited Venice and Rome, I saw many older people walking in the streets, shopping or going somewhere leaning on the arm of another adult. I like to believe that those other adults were their family members or close relatives. I’ll call them the older persons’ family, because it makes me feel better. When these seniors paused to sit down at a sidewalk cafe, the younger adult would take great care to help them sit. They were patient and respectful. It was a heartwarming sight.

The situation is very different in Hong Kong. Here, the younger adults are busy working, and it is domestic helpers who take on the responsibilities of caregiving, day in and day out. Nonetheless, families do care about their elderly relatives in Hong Kong. In the housing estate where I live, there are many domestic workers who walk and exercise with seniors on a daily basis. You can see how well they relate to each other by observing how they interact.

Some domestic helpers talk amongst themselves—for example, a group of seniors and an equal number of maids gather separately each morning in the estate’s garden—while others stay close to carefully observe the seniors in their care. There are those who walk fast and drag the seniors with them along the way, and there are also those who allow the seniors to take their time. It is only during weekends and public holidays that you see more local adults taking care of their parents. You will find them in teahouses, parks, shopping malls and so on.

Filial piety has diverse manifestations in different countries.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.