If there is anyone in Bermuda who is experienced in the care of the elderly it is Dr. G. B. McPhee. Dr. McPhee has been quoted as saying that Bermuda has a very serious and major problem and that "families are crying out for help''.

Dr. McPhee was the physician in charge of the King Edward Hospital's Extended Care Unit until he was forced to retire at age 70. He has pointed out that residents over the age of 65 now constitute the most rapidly growing age group. "It is reasonable to say that our health care resources have not kept pace with the natural and relentless increase in demand for health care services for seniors''. Dr. McPhee has called the situation "a crisis in eldercare''.

Bermuda is not unique in this respect. Health care for the elderly is a subject of major debate in the United States today. However, it does seem to us that these problems ought to be easier to solve in Bermuda where the numbers of people are much more manageable.

Dr. McPhee is saying that because we lack such things as home care and community support services we tend to admit people to the King Edward Hospital who do not really require the extensive care the hospital provides. He has pointed out that at one time 25 percent of the patients in the Extended Care Unit, of which he was the physician in charge, did not need skilled nursing care and could have gone home.

The fact was that they could not go home because they did need some attention and Dr. McPhee has recommended that Bermuda develop more home care services.

The cost of keeping people in hospital who do not necessarily need to be there is believed to be five to six million dollars a year.

Among other things, he has also recommended an intermediate care facility for those who do not need skilled nursing care and increased provisions for day care.

It should be remembered that the people involved are often much more comfortable if they can stay at home or if they are in a facility which does not have a hospital atmosphere.

Today whole families work and it is not always possible to find a caregiver in the family. Yet many older people can remain at home if they have some care.

To assist with that, Dr. McPhee has recommended more home care facilities but he has also suggested such things as holiday relief so that care givers can get a break, and financial help for care givers who might well be giving up a job to provide home care.

What he is suggesting is a more caring society for older Bermudians other than one which puts them away in the hospital. That does not seem too much to ask for.