PAPER A - Problem statement:
Partner:
Summary:
The learners are mostly seniors of about 80 years old coming from rural areas in the south of Italy. They have to leave their houses and their usual habits. Some of the seniors were independent in their daily routine and in their houses but they have to get used to a very different lifestyle. Sometimes the integration in the new social context may be very difficult because the seniors have to adopt themselves to the new environment.
SYNOPSIS - Brainstorming session ideas imagined by learners and staff present at partnership meetings:
These Think Tank ideas operate as incentives for Partners to produce their PAPER B proposals.
PAPER B - How partners propose to solve the problem:
BELGIUM |
With very little opportunities for stimulating social contacts within their residence, leading to depression and poor concentration, the very aged persons need to be reconnected to a real world of relationships and to be given genuine responsibilities, even limited, concerning their everyday life. This can be done in a pleasant atmosphere while taking part in discussion or reminiscence groups that have to be organised regularly and supervised by qualified staff. These groups can be composed of mixed generations to create a sense of real life. |
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CYPRUS |
It will be a good idea - to organize an excursión and visit some interesting palces, museums. - To organize activities like Gym. This will be a meeting point and a start of doing something thatthey really like. |
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| LATVIA | 1. Find a possibility to engage these seniors in leisure, cultural and creative activities, according to their skills and abilities. It is necessarily to involve some of the residents living in this place to help with the organization of the activities. 2. To facilitate any possibility to communicate with their relatives / friends, in order to do it seniors should be encouraged to learn basic skills of working with computers to be able to get in touch with their loved ones virtually. 3. Try to find out about the previous life conditions and ways the seniors had used to live and their attitude to life in this place and do the best to create an environment that resembles the domestic atmosphere. |
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| LUXEMBOURG | • Try to find contact with schools in the region. Children have much less difficulties to reach (approach) older persons. Organize an hour dancing on chairs. This is physical, mental and emotional activation. • Try to adapt all playful activity in a way that the seniors have success in doing it. If the activity is too difficult and they could not manage it, they will move back. So use errorless training-methods! • Some special playful activities could be Games for brain training, Senior Gymnastic with Music and special material like balls and scares, Dancing on chairs, percussion instruments, Singing – even people with dementia illness could often sing Lyrics of traditional songs, … |
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| POLAND |
We propose to organize some activities titled: "Mobility after eighties”. Pupils/Volunteers from the school run an educational project, reach out to elderly people, the ones that live in nursing homes, to help them to get to the activities/ classes. One pupil takes care of one older person. The classes are organized periodically. |
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PORTUGAL |
1. Playing physically challenging games, like Paper Plane. It will challenge their dexterity and moving ability, as well as making them feel distracted and absorbed by what they are doing. This game can even be played by residents on wheelchairs and is especially popular with men; 2. Playing music based games. both activities engaging the seniors’ memory; preparing a Karaoke competition where they can choose to sing their favourite songs, which will then be voted by a jury. The winner will get an award. This activity will work on their self-esteem; 3. Playing memory card games or board games, like Bingo or Pictionary. These games allow them to exercise their memory, along with their creativity or concentration capacities. Besides, it’s a lot of fun. |
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SPAIN |
Incorporating therapies or animal-assisted activities that stimulate users and professionals of the centre and improve residents’ social, emotional and cognitive functioning, and also reduce their apathy. The aim is to rescue the person from its isolation using the most basic means of communication, usually the only one that last: the feelings, emotions and non-verbal communication. Physical contact through stroking and perception of warmth and texture of the skin recovers the sense of touch and playing with an animal improves the psychomotor activity and posture reflexes. The presence of an animal reminds forgotten memories of childhood, also promoting personal relationships and integration in the group. These activities force them to go outside, to move physically, to interact with the other seniors, to feel useful and improve their self-esteem, attention and memory. |
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| TURKEY | • It would be good idea to inspire them to spend time with their young relatives especially with their grandchildren in order to have connection between now and then. • Organizing some kinds of parties to improve their contact with each other. • Inspiring their creativity by developing their skills while making handcrafts such as art, knitting. |
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