The Senior Helpline
A new hotline to help the elderly.
România Internațional, 03.08.2016, 01:21
The number of elderly across Europe has increased substantially. According to the National Statistics Institute, in Romania more than 3 million people are over 65 years of age. Some are lucky enough to afford a place in a nursing home while others live alone and without any help. In order to help them, the Princess Margareta of Romania Foundation has opened a free and confidential helpline where old people aged over 65 can call and ask for help on various issues. Practically, for 25 years since Her Royal Highness Princess Margareta returned to Romania, she has tried to work out programs meant to increase the quality of life of the elderly. The Senior Helpline is a project that meets the needs of old people from Romania. By means of this project they can get information, find emotional support and companions to alleviate their loneliness, as Mugurel Enescu, the executive director of the Princess Margareta of Romania Foundation, said:
“Old people can call our hotline 0800460001 where they will speak to kind and warm people. Those who answer the phone are women specially trained to talk to old people, who have social assistance studies and who are motivated to help old people solve their problems. It is actually a bridge between old people and the services they are provided with. We start from the premise that old people are not as informed as young people are, since not all of the elderly can use the Internet. We have created a well-structured database and we are able to make the connection between the elderly and the NGOs or other institutions that could help them. We can also recommend a seniors ‘clubs or other services that they can find in their own community.
Since thousands of old people are affected by the phenomenon of social isolation and do not know where to go to in order to get support, there were very many of them who called the hotline, says Mugurel Enescu:
“In the 3 months since it was launched we have had almost 1,100 calls, but what is most important is that there were more than 500 people who have asked for our help or simply wanted to get in contact with somebody to help them overcome the feeling of loneliness. There have been over 120 hours of conversation with the old people. They called because they wanted to get financial or medical help, because they needed practical advice or simply wanted to report a case of abuse on an old person. If someone is facing a difficult period in his or her life, we can put him or her in contact with a local NGO or social service that could attend to their needs.
Mrs Elisabeta, 62, is from Baia Sprie, Maramures, and she is very happy with this initiative.
“The national radio station, which I listen to a lot, announced the number of the hotline at the beginning of the year and on January 7 I called. I was curios to find out what the help line was all about and miss Roxana answered the phone. She was very nice. I told her what I needed and she helped me. She gave me the phone number I needed. Every time I call the help line I feel like talking to family members or friends. I trust these people. I believe their advice is useful and welcome.
77-year-old Lucia Felicia is from Galati, eastern Romania, and is into painting. Every now and again she calls the Senior Helpline, where she often finds solutions to her problems.
“I have received various suggestions for the issues I was facing at a certain time. People sometimes need to talk, particularly the elderly. When the mail came and I got the leaflet with the helpline, I remember I was very angry and resolved to give them a call. There was a malfunction in central heating that day; it was pretty cold inside and I remember that made me pretty angry. I called them and they gave me a couple of numbers where I should call and have the installation mended. So, I reckon its a pretty useful service. They encouraged me, asked me if I had started painting and all. They knew I was interested in opening an exhibition. After my husband passed away I got lonely and sometimes I need someone to encourage and help me.
The Princess Margareta Foundation last year launched a volunteer-run association called ‘Never Alone, aimed at improving living conditions for the elderly by delivering and expanding a series of services for these people. Here is Mugurel Enescu, director executive with the Princess Margareta Association.
“There is this association with more than 200 volunteers who can visit the elderly and even go to old peoples homes in an attempt to build a relation with these pensioners and get them out of isolation and loneliness. The association is trying to empower the elderly and periodically, when we get donations from various companies, at Easter or Christmas, we try to help them with packed goods.
The new association was launched following a survey by the GFK institute, which highlights some of the issues currently faced by senior citizens in Romania. The survey shows that close to 1.5 million old people in Romania are affected by loneliness.
“One in two old people is affected by loneliness. The same survey also shows that most of these people have a feeling of uselessness. Actually they are no longer involved in community life and thats what affects them the most. They dont want to depend on others and feel guilty about being a burden for other people. Such a phenomenon points to the fact that the society we live in is getting old and we had to adjust to this issue. So we have to offer these people a chance of playing an active role in the community, the opportunity of volunteering for an activity or another. Wed like to keep them active and help them find part-time employment after retiring to turn an extra penny.
‘The Senior helpline has been launched by a foundation entitled ‘Princess Margaret of Romania as part of a project run jointly with the mobile phone operator Vodafone Romania.
(Translated by L. Simion and D. Bilt)
