The Hong Kong Jockey Club today (19 May) unveiled a wide-reaching new community project designed to revolutionise the way Hong Kong views and cares for its elderly population, in the face of changing demographic trends that will see the proportion of senior citizens more than double over the next 30 years. The five-year project is being supported by funding of up to HK$380 million from the Club.

Entitled "CADENZA: A Jockey Club Initiative for Seniors", the project was officially launched today by Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive The Hon Donald Tsang, GBM. He was joined at the ceremony by Club Chairman The Hon Ronald Arculli, GBS, JP; Chairman of the Elderly Commission, Dr the Hon Leong Che-hung, GBS, JP; and three local celebrities who have been appointed as Ambassadors for the programme: Do Do Cheng, Leo Ku and Woo Kai Sau (Woo Fung).

"CADENZA" stands for "Celebrate their Accomplishments; Discover their Effervescence and Never-ending Zest as they Age". The name was chosen because the Italian word cadenza, a musical term referring to a virtuoso solo passage near the end of a movement in a concerto, is also used figuratively to describe the apex of one's life and the celebration of a lifetime's accomplishments.

Quite apart from the increased pressure that Hong Kong's growing senior population will place on social and healthcare services, the negative but wrong attitude that some people have towards the elderly, and the erosion of traditional family values, are matters of concern. Another issue is that tomorrow's senior citizens will possibly be living in a more affluent environment than earlier generations and will have substantially different expectations for their retirement years.

The Club therefore decided on its own initiative to launch CADENZA, following discussions with leading local and overseas experts. "We realised that if no action were taken to change the attitude and mindset of the general public, elderly issues would present a growing problem and burden to our society," Mr Arculli explained at today's ceremony. "As a responsible member of the community, the Club is always keen to play its part in helping Hong Kong tackle these important issues."

The project comprises five components: a leadership programme to encourage more faculty members and post doctoral students to specialise in gerontology (the scientific study of the social and psychological aspects of ageing); an education and training programme for frontline care workers and professionals who work with the elderly; a public education programme targeting the entire community; a demonstration unit to pilot new approaches to home and residential care taught in the education and training programme; and an evaluation of all the components.

"We are proud and honoured to have secured the support of leading social gerontologists from Hong Kong and major universities in the US - Columbia and Minnesota - to help us create, implement and lead these programmes, alongside Hong Kong's own local experts in social gerontology and geriatrics," Mr Arculli said. "This partnership will ensure that we can roll out a truly world-class programme in keeping with this, Asia's world city. We hope it will also pave the way for further exchanges of expertise at international level."

The programmes will be led by Professor Ada Mui of the Columbia University; Professor Jean Woo of the Chinese University of Hong Kong; and Professor Terry Lum of the University of Minnesota.(For further information and biographies, please see Fact Sheet attached).

Prof Mui expressed the wish that CADENZA could flourish into a new culture and create continual power to encourage the elderly. "We need people who care for their elders and professional care workers to learn and work together so that our senior citizens have a better future," she said. Prof Woo added that "the needs of our ageing population are best served by this multi-disciplinary and multi-sectional model".

Describing CADENZA as "the most comprehensive elderly care initiative in developed countries", Prof Lum said it would improve the quality of life of Hong Kong's elders through training a new cohort of leaders in gerontology, developing the best evidence-based elderly care practice in Chinese society and creating a new culture of vital ageing in Hong Kong.

In addition to enjoying this strong academic support, the Club is working closely with the Elderly Commission, the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau, the Social Welfare Department and various non-government organisations, many of which were represented at today's ceremony.

Dr Leong, Chairman of the Elderly Commission, noted that elderly welfare had always been high on the Club's agenda and it had made numerous donations over the years to help local organisations improve their facilities for the elderly and launch new services. "This time the Club has, on its own initiative, launched CADENZA and on behalf of the Elderly Commission, I should like to thank them for this proactive approach," he said. "Our committee will give the Club its full support."

CADENZA will be rolled out in phases with different emphasis, starting with a campaign to build public awareness of elderly issues, which the Club believes is crucial to achieving the necessary change in attitudes.

The agreement of popular celebrities Do Do Cheng, Leo Ku and Woo Kai Sau to act as CADENZA Ambassadors is an important asset for the public education activities, as the need for greater awareness and action extends to the younger generation as well as the working population who are most involved in elderly care.

Ambassadors Do Do Cheng and Woo Kai Sau will be among the participants in a special one-hour TV show to launch CADENZA to the public tomorrow night (Saturday 20 May) on TVB Jade channel at 8:30 pm.

"The success of this project and the ultimate realisation of its objective - to celebrate late life for each and every one of us - relies on our securing the widest possible awareness and participation," Mr Arculli said. "I call on our community leaders and every member of the public, young and old, to give CADENZA their full support."