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What you want to understand,
And
What you understood,
There are at least nine ways
Of not understanding one another,
But, do let’s try, nonetheless.
Contributed by Jean Broggini
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
SEMINAR ON « AGEING IN GOOD HEALTH »
On 23 April 2003 the first seminar on Ageing in good health took place in the ILO. Over 260 people
attended and the majority went on to enjoy the excellent meal that followed, kindly subsidized by the UN
Credit Union.
Anders Tholle opened the meeting.
could follow as soon as September.
He said this was the first such seminar and hoped the next one
With the use of slides, Dr. David Cohen, erstwhile Deputy Director of the Joint Medical Service in
Geneva, currently Chairman of the Association of Former WHO Staff Members (AFSM), then addressed
the assembly, injecting a sense of humour which went down well with everybody. He spoke of general
health matters, vitamins and the importance of good food, touching upon various ailments confronted by
those getting on in life, such as osteoporosis and arthritis. He mentioned Hormone Replacement Therapy
(HRT), cautioning its use in view of recent research in the USA which pointed to it having been
responsible for breast cancer in too many cases.
Dr. Alexandre Kalache, Chief of the Ageing and Health Programme of WHO. He is responsible for their
Global Movement for Active Ageing and is specialized in cancer epidemiology, social medicine and the
promotion of health then followed. At the very outset he proved to be a popular figure, injecting a
marvellous sense of humour throughout the Seminar. It became clear that the audience here were
unafraid to speak up about what they felt were the most important aspects of good health whilst ageing.
Sitting amongst us was no other than the now-famous centenarian Charlotte Lamunière who was
addressed by the podium more than once. She has long been the essence of admiration and respect for
healthy ageing. When later on in the meeting the importance of drinking a minimum of 2 litres of water
per day was mentioned, she brought the house down by announcing that throughout her 100 years she
had never drunk more than a quarter of a litre of the stuff at any time! Dr. Kalache wanting audience
participation asked what was the most important aspect of ageing. Various ideas were voiced: Water.
Good humour. Helping others. Exercise. Companions. Family ties. One lady said that the youngsters
surrounding her daily life had asked her to write down her experiences in her younger years and a
gentleman seconded that idea. Our life experiences should be passed on. There was nodded
recognition of such a need in several areas of the room.
Next to entertain us (for we were indeed feeling like an audience enjoying a show) was Dr. Norman
Sartorius of the Cantonal University Hospital in Geneva. He is specialized in neurology, psychiatry and
has a doctorate in Psychology. A former staff member of the WHO, he was for many years the
Organisation’s Director of Mental Health. He spoke of the need to have check-ups on a regular basis.
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