Paper Title
A Study on the Military Personnel’s Companionship at their Off-Duty Time for the Elderly Veterans

Abstract
Population aging is a global problem. Taiwan is about to enter ansuper-aging society, and the government has implemented long-term care policies to take care of the elderly. The Veterans Affairs Council (VAC) provides meticulous care for retired military personnel(soldier), who are also honored veterans. This study aims to explore the use of “Time Bank” to investigate how military personnel can use their spare time to participate in the life of elderly veterans, accumulate service hours, and apply for companion services from their accumulated hours when they need to receive services in their old age. Through expert interviews, the attitudes and thoughts of military personnel were investigated. The results of the seven expert interviews showed that military personnel’s understanding of veterans and the VAC’s care for veterans needs to be strengthened. The interviewees agreed that soldiers’ participation in the life of elderly veterans during their spare time and the use of time bank to accumulate companion hours as a service credit for future application are feasible. Three recommendations were made based on the study: First, arrange for active-duty military personnel to understand the rights and obligations of veterans and the VAC’s care for veterans, so that military personnel can be clear about their own rights and obligations after retirement. Second, this study developed a questionnaire for qualitative research and conducted a survey of active-duty military personnel. Through quantitative analysis, the study further understood military personnel’s willingness to participate in the life of elderly veterans during their spare time and provided policy units with reference for application. Finally, a specific region can be selected to verify the effectiveness of the implementation through small-scale local trials, and then gradually expand the feasibility of comprehensive promotion. Keywords - Military personnel, Elderly veterans, Life companionship, Spare time, Time bank.