Ypaja is a small town in Finland. It is located in the Forssa sub-region and the Kanta-Häme province, some 70 kilometers outside of the capital Helsinki. The town has a small population of under 2,500 residents, although a high proportion (over 10 percent) of the people are in their senior years. This being Finland, in the winter, the weather is very cold. At present the typical temperature is 5 degrees Fahrenheit (or -15 Celsius), and it is probably snowing.
Snow and ice make walking hazardous for the elderly. It is easy to slip and bones become brittle as a person gets older. It is through concern about the older members of society that the local authority in Ypaja has offered free anti-slip covers to any resident aged 70 or over.
The local Mayor, Vesa Ketola, has told the BBC that the scheme will cost about 7,000 euros ($7,600). He notes that if an elderly person slips, the typical cost of medical treatment is 20,000 euros ($22,000). The scheme, the local authority feels, makes economic as well as social sense.
Other means to avoid slipping are, excuse the pun, afoot. Another Finnish town — Raisio, located on the western coast — is offering free shoe studs for its senior residents.
