Indonesian pilgrims are predominantly aged 50-59: A five-year trend analysis

A report from the Indonesian Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) shows that the majority of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims are aged 50-59 years. This is evident from Kemenkes reports from 2016 to 2022.

In 2016, the number of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims aged 50-59 reached 53,469. This figure represents 34.62% of the total Indonesian Hajj pilgrims, which numbered 154,441 during that period.

The number of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims aged 50-59 from 2017 to 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic, tended to increase, as shown in the graph above.

However, the number of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims aged 50-59 in 2022, after the pandemic, decreased, although it still dominated other age groups.

In 2022, the number of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims aged 50-59 reached 41,239. This figure represents 44.5% of the total Indonesian Hajj pilgrims, which numbered 92,668 last year.

Meanwhile, the fewest Indonesian Hajj pilgrims in the last five years were in the over-70 age group. This is an exception in 2019, where the under-40 age group was the smallest.

Considering the high trend of Hajj pilgrims aged 50 and above, Kemenkes has prepared several strategies for handling medical emergencies during the 2023 Hajj pilgrimage. One of these is through the formation of an Emergency Medical Team (EMT), formerly known as the Rapid Response Team.

Head of Hajj Health Center, Liliek Marhaendro Susilo, said that the EMT aims to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.

This team is deployed to be closer to the Hajj pilgrims and is tasked with early detection, emergency response to medical emergencies, and referral of Hajj pilgrims requiring treatment at the Indonesian Hajj Health Clinic (KKHI) and Saudi Arabian hospitals (RSAS).

"One of the strategies for Hajj health this year is that we have prepared specialist doctors as EMTs stationed in each sector so that medical emergencies can be handled more quickly," said Liliek in a press release on Thursday (18/5/2023).

The EMT includes 15 specialist doctors in anesthesiology, internal medicine, surgery, neurology, and cardiology. In addition, there are 12 general practitioners and 43 emergency room/ICU/ER nurses.

These emergency medical personnel are on standby to provide healthcare services in 5 working sectors in Madinah and 11 working sectors in Mecca, close to the Hajj pilgrim accommodations. This aims to facilitate access for Hajj pilgrims to healthcare services, especially in emergency situations that cannot be handled by the Hajj health workers in the group.