Day centre for senior citizens opens in Kuldīga
On Friday, 8 February, a day centre for senior citizens was opened at 18 Dzirnavu Street in Kuldīga. In cooperation with the Kuldīga Municipality Social Service, the Latvian Samaritan Association will offer senior citizens who require supervision, social care and rehabilitation to preserve their social skills and cognitive abilities the opportunity to spend time under the guidance of specialists. Around 15 senior citizens will be able to attend the day centre each working day.
Viesturs Kleinbergs, head of the Samaritans’ Home Support Service, expressed his pleasure at the opening of the centre that the Kuldīga Municipality was considering ways to improve the quality of life of senior citizens and had entrusted the Latvian Samaritan Association with jointly establishing a day-care centre for senior citizens in Kuldīga. “Without the municipality’s support, there would be no such centre, and the municipality will also finance its operation,” said V. Kleinbergs. He thanked Lolita Grīnvalde, head of the Samaritan Association’s Kurzeme branch, for her work in establishing the day centre for senior citizens and wished the centre’s staff to approach their work responsibly, while wishing the senior citizens a pleasant time at the day centre.
Viktors Gotfridsons, Deputy Chair of the Kuldīga Municipality Council, expressed his satisfaction with the cooperation with the Latvian Samaritan Association, praising the organisation for the high quality of the social services it provides. Ilze Dambīte-Damberga, the municipality’s executive director, wished that the new day centre would have many happy clients, that everyone who came there would feel comfortable, and that the days would be interesting and filled with meaningful activities and positive thoughts, and that the service received there by the municipality’s senior citizens would be of a very high quality.
The Kuldīga Municipality Social Service emphasises that the day-centre service for senior citizens was created to support both the senior citizens themselves and their relatives. Social Service employees identified the need for such a service through contact with relatives who were concerned that the senior citizens living in their families felt lonely and misunderstood. Relatives had approached the Social Service to address concerns about having to leave a parent or grandparent alone while everyone else was away attending to their daily activities. There are not many municipalities in Latvia that offer this type of service, so relatives—adult children and grandchildren—are especially encouraged to enquire about and use the opportunities provided by this service.
Lolita Grīnvalde, head of the Latvian Samaritan Association’s Kurzeme branch, revealed that the first ten clients had already applied for the service. She invited relatives who were considering whether one of their parents or grandparents might need this service to come to the day centre, view the premises, familiarise themselves with the centre’s daily routine and talk to its staff.
The Latvian Samaritan Association will offer two social rehabilitation programmes according to the individual needs of senior citizens: a part-day, or four-hour, programme and a full-day, or eight-hour, programme, with the range and schedule of activities adapted accordingly. Senior citizens who are not advised to stay at home alone will be able to spend four or eight hours at the day centre. This service will allow the relatives of an elderly person to attend to their daily activities and work with peace of mind, knowing that their family member will be supervised and safe, while also being able to take part in active and creative activities under the guidance of specialists.
The Latvian Samaritan Association’s employees will ensure that senior citizens are cared for, engaged in activities and fed; in summer, walks in the fresh air will also be organised. The day centre has separate rooms for naps, rest and activities, as well as materials for leisure activities—board games, books and press publications. Practical support or assistance with personal care will be provided, including undressing, dressing, maintaining personal hygiene, eating and similar activities. Specialists such as a physiotherapist, psychologist and healthcare professional will also be involved according to each person’s needs. The physiotherapist will also participate in developing an exercise programme.
Applications may be submitted privately or with a referral from the municipality’s Social Service. To obtain information about the procedure for granting and providing the day-centre service for senior citizens, please contact the Kuldīga Municipality Social Service at 9 Dzirnavu Street. Information is also available by telephone at 27020746 (social worker Ieva Rancāne) or 27020734 (Inese Jaunzeme).
When applying for the service, social workers will require an application signed by the senior citizen and a certificate issued by the family doctor or a psychiatrist, specifying the diagnosis, confirming the absence of contraindications and providing information about the medications to be taken. A meeting with the senior citizen will then be arranged to assess their individual needs and determine the extent of the service to be granted. A decision prepared by the Social Service will be issued as the referral for receiving the service at the day centre.
With a referral from the Social Service, senior citizens will have to make a small co-payment amounting to just 10 per cent of the costs. The cost for four hours will be EUR 1.20, while the eight-hour programme will cost EUR 1.45. The service is provided free of charge to low-income and needy persons.
To receive the service without the involvement of the Social Service, please call 25691384 (Lolita Grīnvalde, head of the Latvian Samaritan Association’s Kurzeme branch). Without a decision from the Social Service, the service will be charged at the full price: EUR 12 for four hours and EUR 14.50 for a full day, or eight hours.
