Cash-strapped Bahrain elderly centre craves support
Manama : There are some heartening facts about the condition of the elderly in the Kingdom. There is much less elder abuse, in comparison to societies elsewhere. Bahrain also brags the first Elderly Day Care Centre in the GCC region. UCO Elderly Day Care Centre was founded in Hidd in 1994 and it accommodates around 200 elderly people of both genders on a daily basis. Now the Centre is in dire straits as it struggles to find financial sources to provide better services. According to the Centre’s officials, they welcome any sort of donation, medical equipment or voluntary work.
General Director Reema Binshams said the Centre depends on the modest financial support they receive annually from the Labour and Social Development Ministry, in addition to aid from a number of donors and benefactors.
However, Binshams explained that “the increase in the number of similar social care centres in the past decade has affected the flow of donations to the Centre.”
“UCO is the first Elderly Day Care centre in Bahrain and the GCC region. There are at least 10 new centres now in the Kingdom and the succour we received once is being distributed now among all of us (Centres),” she noted.
The Director, who was once a volunteer at the Centre, informed that a second storey is currently under construction and other maintenance works are underway.
“We will have more rooms and facilities to accommodate the increasing numbers of visitors. Furnishing the new department requires huge funding, as some medical and physiotherapy equipment are expensive. We have temporarily moved the visitors to a nearby hall until the construction works are completed,” Binshams said.
Speaking about the services provided by the Centre, she elaborated: “The idea was introduced by the elite of Hidd residents. It was to gather elderly people in one shaded and secured facility. They gather here every morning to chat, read newspapers, attend lectures and engage in many other activities.”
“We provide physiotherapy and healthcare services, adult literacy programmes, handcrafting workshops and other activities in arts and traditional handworks. We also have weekly activities such as sports day, medical check-ups, technology lectures and more,” she added.
The Centre is open from 7am to 1pm and free transportation is available for the residents of Muharraq Governorate.
“We were invited more than one occasion to social centres in the GCC countries, where joint activities are frequently organised. We also have organised pilgrimage trips and visits to the Holy Lands in Mecca and Medina. We have attended camps and sports events, such as the main football matches of Bahrain,” the Director said.
Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and the Wife of His Majesty the King and Supreme Council for Women (SCW) Chairperson HRH Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa had visited the Centre.
Binshams recalled that HRH the Premier engaged with the elderly at the Centre in traditional activities and talked about the glorious past of Bahrain. “His visits are unforgettable to us,” she added. eld
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