Tonga pilots social service for elderly care [1]
Friday, August 17, 2012 - 19:00. Updated on Monday, September 9, 2013 - 18:40.
Assigning caregivers to visit homes of the most vulnerable elderly people in Tongatapu and Lifuka in Ha'apai, and to care for them for a few hours each day, is an essential service that will be provided under Tonga's first Social Services Pilot program for the elderly.
Hon Lisiate 'Akolo the Minister for Finance and National Planning launched the program after signing a contract with Betty Blake the President of the Ma'a Fafine moe Famili, on August 15 in Nuku'alofa.
The Ministry of Finance contracted the local non-government organisation to provide the service on a one year trial, starting this month until August 2013. The program is funded by Japan's Fund for Poverty Reduction through the Asian Development Bank.
Betty told Matangi Tonga that one important aspect of the service will be the home care visits. "We plan to assign one caregiver to care for one elderly person four hours a day. On a weekly basis one caregiver is expected to have five homecare visits."
She said the caregiver's job would include feeding, bathing, cooking and washing clothes if needed. "And if they have any illness the caregivers will monitor their medication intake or if they fall sick refer them to the local clinic or contact the program's on-call doctor," she said.
Betty said they were now in the process of recruiting their new staff inlcuding one case manager and 20 caregivers in the next few weeks. The European Union would provide 10 days of intenstive training in social services so they can better serve the elderly.
"The positions are still being advertised and we are looking for people with either nursing and caregiving skills or anyone who has the experience of taking care of their own elderly at home," she said.
Pilot
Betty said the case manager would manage and monitor the caregivers, the cases of the elderly people involved, and keep track of the program's progress.
The social service will be provided to 150 elderly persons with 130 to be selected from the eastern and western districts of Tongatapu and 20 elders in Lifuka.
She said that starting next week they would carry out site visits to identify the 150 most vulnerable elderly based on the criteria that they must be 60 years or older, have an official diagnosis or referral from doctor, or those who are home alone but needed care.
"This service to the elderly is very much needed in Tonga and it is about time that we implement it because some families need to work to earn money leaving their elderly people home alone. So we want to start as soon as possible and start caring," she said.
It is expected that when the program ends after a year, it will be handed over to Government for policy formulation, ongoing implementation and expansion of the service to the elderly.