Program creates easy access to services, boosting older people's self-worth

With her cane leaning to one side, 69-year-old Hong Mei holds onto the handrails of the treadmill and walks slowly as she chats with her friends.

After undergoing surgery to repair a hip fracture, Hong has been visiting the newly opened community gym for about a month, arriving at 10 am most days. The gym is free for seniors in the community who can take part in exercise programs and follow rehabilitation instructions suggested for them after undergoing physical assessments.

However, as a senior resident of 380 Lane Community in Jing'an district in Shanghai, Hong is eligible for many other benefits under an integrated community pilot program.

"The recovery is going well, and my days with my senior friends are fulfilling," she said.

"It's healthy, cheap and convenient to have breakfast and lunch at the community canteen and a casual dinner at home," Hong said, adding that she participated in community singing and dancing activities two or three times a week before her surgery.

The community is one of 106 communities participating in the pilot program, which focuses on accommodating a set community population and providing easy access to basic public services.

The concept was proposed in 2010 by Wu Liangyong, a professor at Tsinghua University and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, who took it as the basic living unit. Inspired by the "walkable neighborhoods" of Singapore, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development stipulated that an integrated community should accommodate a population of 5,000 to 12,000 people and guarantee residents convenient access to public amenities within a five-to-10-minute walk.

The close-knit nature of such communities is seen as ideal for elderly people who need easy access to activities, meals and health services. Living in such communities also gives elderly residents a greater sense of self-worth and the ability to interact with others.

China initiated the integrated community pilot program in October 2022, and in July last year designated a batch of pilot communities to better meet the needs of the elderly.

Second lease on life

Old residential areas constitute a significant proportion of housing in China as well as the pilot communities.

The 380 Lane Community is one such community with 5,270 residents across 46 buildings. Comprised of four residential areas established around 1995, elderly people account for nearly 50 percent of the residents. Some are retired professionals who still have a great deal to offer the community.

"I no longer perceive myself as a burden to my children, but I find I have a deeper sense of happiness," said 69-year-old Cheng Cuiping, a retired doctor who volunteers at the health service desk in the community's public services center.

"Now, I'm able to take care of myself on my own, and I have things to do every day."

Cheng helps measure the height, weight and blood pressure of elderly people who come for free checkups. During the lunch break between 11 am and 1:30 pm, she spends around 15 yuan ($2.10) on a low-salt, low-oil and nutritionally balanced lunch at the canteen.

She also goes to a nearby digital booth to scan a QR code to get a free mask. The digital booth has a remote tele-consultation machine for minor illnesses, and a 24-hour pharmacy dispensing both over-the-counter and prescription medication.

A 5-square-meter orange booth has been set up in the community for commercial businesses to provide services such as housekeeping, laundry and kitchen knife sharpening. However, as a condition of their operations, the businesses must employ at least one member from the community.

"We constantly adapt our services based on the needs of the residents. For instance, we helped one senior repair his old mechanical watch, and we offer on-site service to elderly people who need to wash their curtains," said Gu Haibin, a local Party official.

"Staff at the spot are all residents of the community, relieving the unemployment problem while providing more intimate services."

Ups and downs

Integrated community managers have been encouraged to address the issue of whether elevators should be installed in older residential buildings.

Many older buildings lack elevators, making it difficult for residents to get around. The absence of elevators impacts the elderly more severely as they find it difficult to go up and down stairs, which restricts their daily outings and social activities.

To address the issue, a community needs to persuade residents to agree to install an elevator and address issues such as where it will be located and construction costs. Other matters to be looked at are the impact of the loss of light on the ground floor and the installation of wider elevator cabins to facilitate wheelchair access.

The local government provides a subsidy of 280,000 yuan for each elevator, and the remaining costs are borne by the building's residents in proportion to the height of the floor they live on, ranging from some 30,000 yuan to about 150,000 yuan. However, this can lead to disagreements as some residents, especially more able-bodied ones, do not see the need for the elevators and are unwilling to bear the costs.

As of February, standards have been met to install elevators in 15 buildings in the 380 Lane Community, with six already put into use.

In addition to elevators, the community builds or renovates various public amenities, including medical clinics, canteens, repair centers and nurseries.

High-tech security

However, not all the communities involved in the pilot program are old, and some are testing new technologies.

Built around 2010, Park Community in Jiujiang's Chaisang district, Jiangxi province, is relatively new.

It is using advanced technology to enhance the security of the community and provide extra safety for the elderly.

Park Community has installed facial recognition and AI-monitoring systems, and intelligent security cameras to prevent unauthorized entry by strangers and eliminate potential safety hazards.

Sponsored by local tech companies, the community has provided smart bracelets to its nine elderly residents aged 80 and above living alone. The bracelets can conduct real-time blood pressure and heart rate monitoring and send alerts to the user's emergency contacts. A warning is also sent when the user stays at home for three consecutive days.

Sun Zhaoyang, a 22-year-old community worker, said that the elderly residents' children and community workers are listed as emergency contacts.

"I'm responsible for three of them, and I visit them two or three times a week. ... there has not been a single instance of them staying indoors for three days," Sun said.

Cao Jianbei, 85, lives in the community. His son, who works in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, told Sun that he felt more reassured with the changes that have happened in the community.

Although the public response to the Park Community pilot program has been positive, significant hurdles remain in renovating residential areas and improving public services.

Huang He, deputy head of Chaisang district, said that 6 million yuan has been spent as of November on the construction of the integrated community.

Government funds have been mainly used for road improvements and upgrades to rainwater and sewage pipes. Huang said a financing company had raised funds for improvement work on surrounding parks and roads and the construction of leisure areas.

He said the biggest challenge to the long-term operations of such communities is attracting external investment to provide the services. "It's hard for us to find another 6 million yuan (as of November) for other communities," Huang said.

Viable future

Zhao Dong, deputy head of the Zhejiang Provincial Urban and Rural Planning and Design Institute, said the sustainability of operations is important to the future of integrated communities.

Zhejiang leads the promotion of the integrated community program, as it has the most pilot communities, with the majority of them more developed than others.

The province also has rich experience accumulated through previous provincial projects in residential living environments.

Zhao said it is important to have a scientific approach to urban development by taking into account the layout of public amenities, maximizing the use of resources and alleviating operational pressures.

This holistic approach should also be applied to the running of an integrated community, which can be transformed from a nonprofit to a commercial organization or reduce operating costs through collaboration with private enterprises.

Xianghu Community in Hangzhou's Xiaoshan district is looking at ways to minimize the costs of the services they provide.

The community has a canteen equipped with cooking facilities. The canteen operator is exempt from paying the rent, but in exchange, they have to provide subsidized meals for the elderly.

Zhao said community canteens can expand their operations to provide food delivery services to nearby areas.

Xianghu Community earns additional revenue by charging a 100-yuan entrance fee for visitors who are curious and want to learn from the operation.

"Government, companies, communities and residents should join hands for a promising future," Zhao said.