The first workshop on "Aging and Aged Societies in East Asia", entitled "Toward Aging Asia: Distinctions and Commonalities among Countries", was held at the hotel Metropolitan Ikebukuro, Tokyo, February 6, 2010. The meeting was attended by more than 20 delegates representing Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam and local researchers.

• Program (pdf)
• Conference report (pdf)

Conference report

The first workshop on "Aging and Aged Societies in East Asia", entitled "Toward Aging Asia: Distinctions and Commonalities among Countries", was held at the hotel Metropolitan Ikebukuro, Tokyo, February 6, 2010. The meeting was attended by more than 20 delegates representing Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam and local researchers. The director of TMIG, Dr. Hideki Ito, welcomed the participants to the workshop, focusing on how the gerontology profession deals with the consequences of society aging.

	The director of TMIG, Dr. Hideki Ito

Dr. Naoki Maruyama introduced Professor Naohiro Ogawa of Nihon University in Tokyo, who made the keynote speech on "Rapid Population Aging and Policy Options in Selected Asian Countries." He stated the structural changes of the first and second demographic dividends by showing the computed results of the NTA (National Transfer Accounts) project.
 
Professor Ching-Yu Chen of National Taiwan University in Taipei pointed out that the capacity of home- and community-based care services failed to meet the estimated demand and that the increasing demand of foreign care workers is another concern of the society.

Professor Naohiro Ogawa	Professor Ching-Yu Chen

Dr. Be Quynh Nga of Institute of Sociology in Ha Noi introduced the conversion of a traditional agricultural society to an industrial society and appearance of socio-economic risks and health issues among the elderly in Vietnam.

Dr. Mi Kyung Kim of Hanyang University in Seoul stated the high percentage of depression, cognitive impairment and a few social contacts in Korean elderly persons. The importance of long-term care insurance introduced in 2008 was highlighted.

Dr. Be Quynh Nga	Dr. Mi Kyung Kim

Dr. Paulo Chaves of Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health in Baltimore focused on frailty, which has been thought of as a syndrome whose clinical hallmark is enhanced vulnerability to stressors and increased risk of major adverse health outcomes.

Dr. Paulo Chaves	Dr. Ryutaro Takahashi

Finally, Dr. Ryutaro Takahashi of TMIG in Tokyo presented a paper related to the revised long-term care insurance system and ageing of baby boom generation. Prevention of the need for care and development of community-based support system were stressed.