Central to a human rights-based approach
is the idea that older people participate actively
and make informed decisions about their health
and well-being; this is also a core element of the
person-centred public-health approach. Policies
and programmes should empower older
people to contribute to, and remain active members
of, their communities for as long as possible,
according to their capacity (79). However,
ensuring meaningful participation and continuing
community leadership require adequate
financial and technical support. Ensuring that
attention is paid to human rights also adds
value to efforts to improve ageing and health by
recognizing the importance of accountability.
Accountability empowers individuals to claim
their rights. Accountability for health can be
enhanced through the use of multiple mechanisms,
including human rights mechanisms at
the international, regional and national levels,
as well as by developing national committees
on ageing, or other monitoring, complaint and
redress processes. These may help to unearth
hidden issues, such as violence against older
people. For example, the Asia Pacific Forum of
National Human Rights Institutions has helped
call attention to the vulnerability of older people
in institutional care to discrimination and abuse,
emphasizing its “systemic rather than individual
nature”, which requires action across sectors
and domains, including by advocates for human
rights, public health and older people (80).