Support the elderly
Helping others is a very rewarding experience for the helper.
Support the elderly over 60’s to live independent, comfortable, secure and contented lives in their own homes.
Older people should feel secure and content in their own home. Whether dealing with a broken washing machine or helping with hospital appointments, there is a lot that we can do to help.
Today’s world can be a complicated and worrying place, so older people mustn’t be left alone. Older people should also get involved in social events, meet new people and find new friends.
Many older people have lost the companionship of work colleagues, their husband or wife may have died, children may now live and work away from them. All part of life’s natural progression, but things which can easily lead to loss of confidence and social isolation resulting in older people becoming virtual prisoners in their own home.
You can always help the elderly:
- through home visits offering a friendly face and someone to talk in confidence to.
- help with worries over house and garden upkeep.
- assist in resolving concerns over official forms or the simple minor problems of everyday life.
- offer companionship, and a chance to get involved in a range of social events.
Volunteers can be of any age, most are other older people helping each other.
Helpers can work as little or as much as they want, doing whatever they are good at. This could be as:
- visiting an older person in their home for a chat and a cuppa.
- helping to keep in regular telephone contact with housebound older people.
- assisting at drop-in/coffee mornings
- escorting an older person on a day outing
- assisting those who are less mobile to attend social events.
- Elderly need the opportunity to meet others in similar circumstances, make new friends and have good gossip.
- Elderly need gentle exercise classes that provide social and health benefits, encouraging older people to challenge declining mobility.
We can’t get our youth back, but it helps to feel that we are not on our own. We need to forget about the worries associated with getting just that little bit older.
