2005 Volume 78 Issue 1 Pages 48-63
The present paper examines the residential continuity of people aging within an urban environment. It considers the housing policy in a facility for single elderly people in Bunkyo Ward, known as the Silver Peer Housing Project. The Silver Peer Housing Project targets low-income single elderly people who cannot afford privately owned housing.
The paper deals with two main related issues. The first one refers to disabilities associated with old age. The second considers the constraints of the physical and social environment of Bunkyo Ward and their effect on Silver Peer residents. The research is based on interviews with 17 occupants of three Silver Peer housing facilities in Bunkyo Ward.
Our investigation clarified the following:
1. Bunkyo Ward has built up over time various urban amenities and social infrastructure that support residential continuity. However, with disabilities due to aging, some of the residents cannot enjoy the convenience of such urban amenities.
2. Mainly due to geographical (environmental) constraints like slopes, residents with severe physical disabilities find their mobility limited.
3. The interpersonal relationships of the residents are not intimate, and neither are their relations with the local community. The residents do not have neighbors to rely on for support. As a consequence, they have to rely on “life support members, ” persons who extend aid in case of emergency. Recently, however, the role of life support members has been forced to expand, due to aging and associated disabilities of the residents.
4. Disabled residents increasingly need continual support in their daily lives and must rely on outside help. However, the Nursing Insurance System puts very strict limitations on the types of service they are eligible for. The services that the residents need most are surveillance, including attendance when going out, and such services are not covered by the Nursing Insurance System. As a result, the residents must cover individually the burdening costs of such services.
In the midst of a financial crisis, the Silver Peer Housing Project cannot be expected to expand. Further research is needed as the basis of effective policy steps to support residential continuity.
