Latest news with #olderpeople
BBC News
7 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Covid Inquiry: 'Lessons can be learned' from care home lockdowns
Locking down care homes to protect residents from Covid was "one of the most difficult decisions" that had to be made throughout the pandemic, Northern Ireland's former commissioner for older people has told the UK Covid Lynch said his office heard distressing stories from families about loved ones whose conditions deteriorated due to not receiving family said he hoped lessons can be learned and that concrete changes can be made to how care homes will cope in the case of a future inquiry, sitting in London, is examining the impact of the pandemic on social care including people who lived in care homes and those receiving domiciliary care at home. Visitor ban consequences 'more serious than we initially expected' "I was aware of the impact that this was going to have on people, but at that stage it seemed like people's right to protect their lives trumped everything else," Mr Lynch told the inquiry that he had supported the visiting policy following advice from experts that fewer people going in and out of care homes from the community would reduce the risk for people in those care home he said that after a period of time he realised that the negative side of that policy was "very serious and probably more serious than we initially expected"."It was clear to me that for many older people that that system meant that they didn't see family members face to face for the last weeks or months of their lives."It was a very awful position to be in and I think in the future we need to weigh up the risk associated with contracting the virus and putting in place measures that allows continued social contact and direct human contact with family members," he added. Mr Lynch said that in those early stages of the pandemic care homes were in the firing line and it felt greater attention was being given to hospitals instead of care homes, when the care homes were clearly "more vulnerable". In March 2020, 23% of the population in Northern Ireland were older people, which is defined as those aged 60 years and former commissioner said from the outset of the pandemic he reminded officials that everyone needed to stop referring to care homes as buildings but instead as people's inquiry is examining how Northern Ireland dealt with personal protective equipment (PPE), testing and tracing the infection, discharge policy and Lynch said that in many of these areas "Northern Ireland played catch up" and testing could have been introduced at an earlier stage, but instead there was a feeling of "push back."He said, within the first couple of months, they knew the "devastating impact" the pandemic was having on care told the inquiry that experts were telling him that testing and tracing the virus was "critical" for care homes to get a handle on it, but that he felt testing was "far too slow in coming". Testing 'could have been done weeks earlier' When a testing programme was introduced by the Department of Health which became regular, Mr Lynch said he had " deep frustration" at the speed of that and what he saw was "a lack of urgency about how important that was in response to the pandemic".Mr Lynch claimed testing could have been introduced and ramped up earlier and that while resources may have been one of the issues, he did not believe it was entirely about said in the early stages there did not seem to be "a huge appetite" for testing, particularly in care home settings and that the roll out of testing could have been done weeks Lynch told the inquiry that the weaknesses of the social care sector for older people were "horribly exposed at the outset of the pandemic".He said that the pandemic had a devastating impact on older people and those with underlying health care problems who were at most risk."The nature of the virus was difficult to control once it got into those settings, " Mr Lynch asked about draft guidance that was issued by the DOH on 16 March 2020, Mr Lynch said the guidance was limited and there was little opportunity for others to influence it.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Community network receives £132k to boost services
An initiative to keep older people in the community active and connected has been backed with thousands of pounds in funding. The Volunteer Centre Dorset (VCD) has been awarded a two-year contract to create the Dorset Thriving Communities Network. The network has been allotted £132,000 in grant funding, to be divided among community groups and charities in Purbeck, north Dorset and Weymouth over the coming months. In a statement, the VCD explained the initiative has been created to "establish and strengthen these small networks". Projects receiving the funding will include lunch clubs, art classes and warm spaces for people to gather, in a bid to help older people feel independent and connected with their community. Councillor Steve Robinson from Dorset Council said: "This 'proof of concept' exercise holds the potential to develop a completely new method of funding our Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) core costs." He said the initiative could "create a truly engaged and resilient sector, able to provide long term health and wellbeing support as our older population grows". Marie Waterman, chief executive of VCD, added: "This is about more than just funding - it's about supporting the people and groups already making a difference in their neighbourhoods. "By working together, we can create local networks that are responsive, resilient, and rooted in the strengths of each community." A review into the initiative will be held after a year by Dorset's Voluntary and Community Sector Assembly (VCSA), reporting to the Dorset Health and Wellbeing Board. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Service befriending lonely elderly people extended Charity hosts community group to tackle loneliness Overhaul of council community services planned Students and elderly pair up to combat loneliness Dorset Council
BBC News
14-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Dorset communities network receives grant to support older people
An initiative to keep older people in the community active and connected has been backed with thousands of pounds in Volunteer Centre Dorset (VCD) has been awarded a two-year contract to create the Dorset Thriving Communities network has been allotted £132,000 in grant funding, to be divided among community groups and charities in Purbeck, north Dorset and Weymouth over the coming a statement, the VCD explained the initiative has been created to "establish and strengthen these small networks". Projects receiving the funding will include lunch clubs, art classes and warm spaces for people to gather, in a bid to help older people feel independent and connected with their Steve Robinson from Dorset Council said: "This 'proof of concept' exercise holds the potential to develop a completely new method of funding our Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) core costs."He said the initiative could "create a truly engaged and resilient sector, able to provide long term health and wellbeing support as our older population grows".Marie Waterman, chief executive of VCD, added: "This is about more than just funding - it's about supporting the people and groups already making a difference in their neighbourhoods."By working together, we can create local networks that are responsive, resilient, and rooted in the strengths of each community."A review into the initiative will be held after a year by Dorset's Voluntary and Community Sector Assembly (VCSA), reporting to the Dorset Health and Wellbeing Board. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Mail & Guardian
13-07-2025
- Health
- Mail & Guardian
Climate crisis puts older adults at high risk from extreme heat, Unep warns
Older people face increasing health risks from extreme heat as climate change intensifies, the United Nations Environment Programme (Unep) has warned. (Envato Elements) Older people face In the latest edition of its The report highlights other effects of climate change, including the melting of glaciers that reawaken ancient pathogens and floods that risk releasing dangerous chemicals, as well as potential solutions to these emerging environmental issues. Older people are The global population aged 65 and older is projected to increase from 10% in 2024 to 16% by 2050, primarily in low and middle-income countries, the report notes. Concurrently, climate change is exacerbating risks such as The world is also becoming 'A rising number of cities will therefore soon face the new reality of increasingly ageing urban dwellers. Maintaining good health and vitality is crucial at any age and minimising risk factors for diseases become even more critical as we age,' the report said. 'In addition to the genetic, physiological, behavioural and social influences, environmental conditions play a crucial role, especially in cities that bring together a high concentration of a variety of environmental health risks.' The risks of respiratory, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, and the increased risk of mortality, become particularly acute for frail people with reduced mobility and chronic health issues. Air pollution and chemical contamination increase the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, dementia, depression and anxiety. Poverty, crowded cities and social isolation also raise the vulnerability of older people. The report recommends transforming cities into age-friendly, pollution-free, resilient, accessible spaces with expansive vegetation through better urban planning. Investing in weather stations to monitor extreme heat is critical to protect lives while community-based disaster risk management and access to information are key approaches to help aging people adapt successfully to climate change, it said. The report follows the United Nations Human Rights Council resolution 58/13 to develop an 'international legally binding instrument on the human rights of older persons'. Zombie microbes It warns of the ' Should global temperatures rise more than 2˚C above pre-industrial levels, this would significantly reduce the cryosphere in mass, which includes glaciers, seasonal snow, ice sheets and shelves, sea ice, seasonally frozen ground, and permafrost. 'In a best-case scenario, it would take centuries for cryosphere conditions to return.' The cryosphere is surprisingly rich in ancient life, including fungi, bacteria, and viruses, of which some are pathogens. Much of this life is currently dormant. Warming could reactivate and remobilise modern and ancient microorganisms in cryospheric environments. 'Some might thrive, modifying existing microbial communities, while some might not survive resulting in a loss of microbial can enhance the powers of existing pathogens through natural gene transfers, resulting in heightened risk of antimicrobial resistance,' said the report. Cryospheric regions are home to 670 million people. This population could rise to 844 million by 2050, spanning the Alps, the Andes, Greenland, Hindu Kush Himalaya, Siberia, and the Tibetan Plateau as well as billions more who live in areas with water originating from those frozen areas. To slow down the decline of the cryosphere, the report recommends cutting greenhouse gas emissions — including black carbon emissions from diesel engines — open-field agricultural burning, and wildfires and limiting tourism in fragile frozen regions. Scientific research must also accelerate into the diversity of cryospheric microorganisms that will not survive the cryosphere's decline. Banned chemicals re-emerge Global climate change is contributing to longer, more severe, and more frequent floods. A flood can carry significant volumes of sediment and debris, the report said. Sediments and debris often include common inorganic When floods occur, these can re-enter cities or the food system. The persistent nature of these chemicals means even banned and phased-out chemicals can be remobilised. In recent years, extreme rainfall and subsequent flooding have demonstrated their ability to remobilise legacy pollutants accumulated in the environment. Extensive petroleum operations and incidences of oil spills in the Niger Delta of Nigeria over decades has led to severe contamination with ecological and human health consequences, the report said. A catastrophic flood event in the Niger Delta in 2012 mobilised sediments contaminated with After the worst flooding in more than 100 years The same flood also mobilised legacy radionuclides and heavy metal pollutants from former uranium-mining waste dumps and tailing ponds in the Elbe region. The Pakistan flood of 2010 inundated a fifth of the country's total land area. It, together with a series of smaller flash floods, swept away a significant but unknown portion of 2 835 metric tonnes of 'The release of these obsolete chemicals into the environment will likely cause further contamination in soils, water, and sediments, and the damage needs to be monitored and assessed,' the report said. Effective measures to reduce this imminent risk include traditional control measures like polders, dikes and retention basins, improved drainage systems, nature-based solutions like the sponge-city approach, regular monitoring of pollutants in diverse locations and products, and studying and tackling the economic impacts of this kind of pollution. The risk of ageing dams Another emerging threat the report addresses is the risk of ageing dams. It notes that alongside many benefits, dams can harm indigenous and fishing-dependent communities, as well as degrade ecosystems. There are about 62 000 large dams and millions of smaller barriers that exist worldwide, with expected effects on 90% of the world's river volume by 2030. Large ageing dams are increasingly being removed in Europe and North America, once they become unsafe, obsolete, or economically unviable. Greater natural river connectivity means healthier ecosystems and greater biodiversity, renewing species' access to tens or even hundreds of kilometres of upstream habitats. The report noted, however, that where urbanisation, industrial agriculture or deforestation are common, dam removal alone may not significantly improve a river's health. Large dam removals have the largest impact, though removing multiple small barriers may result in similar effects. Adhering to the UN's principles for ecosystem-restoration initiatives when considering the removal of river barriers is critical, the report said.
BBC News
13-07-2025
- General
- BBC News
Carers protest in Winchester against day centre changes
Campaigners have protested against proposed changes to council-run day care centres for older outside the Hampshire County Council offices in Winchester on Saturday, the group said they feared for the future of the city's Chesil Lodge and Basingstoke's Newman people at the protest described the centres as a "lifeline" and "very important" for county council, which has a total budget shortfall of £97.6m, said it had no plans to close the facilities and wanted to keep services going in an affordable way. Joan Ferrer, from Bishop's Waltham, said she joined the protest to show her support for the service provided at Chesil Lodge. Mrs Ferrer said her husband, who died last year, had loved going to the centre and described it as a "lifeline". She said Chesil Lodge was a "happy place" with activities including singing, quizzes and Streat's husband of 52 years, Ian, has mobility problems and is worried about being left alone because of the risk of falling. He has recently been allocated a second session a week at Chesil Lodge. Mrs Streat said the provision was "very important", adding: "He always enjoys going there. I know he's being well looked after by delightful staff. They are so kind, considerate, and caring. "I get a chance to get out of the house, go shopping or see friends, which otherwise I am rather tied at home. But I don't mind that because he's such a lovely man." Mrs Streat said the centre gave carers like her "a breathing space". Hampshire County Council said: "The idea is to bring in a different organisation to run the service at Chesil Lodge and at Newman Court. "This would help us reach more people and improve how the service is used. "It would also save the county council around £210,000 a year, helping us keep services going in a way that's affordable."The authority has a remaining budget shortfall across the whole council of £97.6m for 2025/26 financial from a public consultation, held from March to May, are due to go before councillors at scrutiny meetings next week. Four service areas - highways maintenance, post-16 transport, school transport and older adult day care - are being looked at and could bring savings of £9.86m if approved, said the council.A final decision about the future of the day centres is expected in August. You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
