[Rehabilitation for the elderly, why?].

Within human culture the attitude towards the aged has been very different up to now, ranking from ritual slaughter to worshipping of the wise old persons. Ambivalence persists till now. We have introduced the terminus "rehabilitation of the old" to indicate a principal which is adequate in the medical sense as it is adequate to humanity. Our slogan runs: nursing alone (meaning isolated care for vegetative necessities) is inhuman in old people. Rehabilitative view points and activities must come into the care for the aged on all levels there are: from readaptation to profession, "over independence and being socially adequate" up to the resting last possibility of having fun. Rehabilitation of the old can only succeed if there is an integrative set up which means (again as a slogan): We want rehabilitation of old to invade all hospitals and all human groupements instead of bringing the old out of these groupings and separate them in senior ghettos. This must go hand in hand with specialization and scientific identification of geriatrics and rehabilitation; specially neuro-rehabilitation and rehabilitation of the old, which are in close connex. Quite a number of administrative barriers have to be removed, new possibilities must be created. There must be a complete new viewing of the matter and new goals in medical education, as well pregraduate as postgraduate. A new generation of doctors can find here a big good chance. However, it can only be successful in close collaboration with a progressive politic administration.