The San Bartolomé City Council presented this Thursday its project for a Municipal Family Respite Center, which will offer "specialized care and is designed and studied to offer well-being and care" to the dependents of the municipality and "a time of relaxation for their caregivers".
The mayor, Alexis Tejera, began the press conference addressing precisely the situation of these caregivers, who "need the support of the institutions." Therefore, he explained that the center "will offer a few hours a day to help dependent elderly people, the objective of this municipal project being to promote the family and socio-labor reconciliation of family members and people in their care." "It will provide specialized care without leaving the municipality, in a large facility fully adapted to the needs of users," they point out from the Consistory.
"It is a moral obligation to respond from the administrations, in a dignified manner, to the social demand we have, because when faced with a problem of physical or emotional overload, we fail to have relief or we lack air, we also lack the energy to continue caring," the mayor stressed.
"We seek to support family caregivers in situations of dependency, offering through the Municipal Family Respite Center a period of rest, free time to have their own life, or for a vacation. Therefore, we will take advantage of an existing facility between Arrecife and Brisa streets, improving its operation and modernizing the construction, including a new rear module and with vegetation, and a playground in the outdoor area with benches and shade," he detailed.
"Our goal is to improve the quality of life and well-being of people, and the elderly are a priority, contributing to this from the City Council by strengthening the home help service, through the unwanted loneliness project, with which we have already contacted 1,300 of the 1,800 elderly people in the municipality to develop a diagnosis and support for the elderly, and the Municipal Family Respite Center is another of the cornerstones of our management and conception of municipal social services that involve direct care, improvement of services and offering means to alleviate families. We are also working to ensure that the El Quintero Partial Plan is developed and to have the future residential complex for the elderly," added Tejera
For her part, the Councilor for Social Services, María Dolores Fernández, intervened, highlighting that "San Bartolomé is committed to comprehensive social services." "We are with our elders and there are many actions that we are offering, ranging from emergency aid or reinforced home help, which benefits dependents and their families. With this project that we present today, we offer you a break, while fulfilling our objective of providing from the administration all the services that are within our reach to make life easier for families with dependent elderly people in their care," she defended.
Marlene Romero, Councilor for Urban Planning, reported on the most technical issues of the project, explaining that "the need to create a space for the elderly with less autonomy has been valued" to give "caregivers that much-needed respite", putting "all the resources so that the San Bartolomé Municipal Family Respite Center can become a reality, because putting the resources is imperative in the management of municipal policy."
According to her, they will be "modern facilities to provide a respite service to families and a meeting point for the elderly who live this situation." "An integrated space is proposed, completely accessible, and where the terraces and exterior take center stage, including a playground in the back, allowing the elderly to be close to families and children while they play or the elderly perform maintenance on the bio-healthy machinery. A central patio and glazing will provide luminosity, greater integration of the space and comfort," she detailed.
The center will have two multipurpose rooms, common rooms, a treatment room with adjustable geriatric beds, a staff room, an administration room and an outdoor space for adapted physical exercise, with bio-healthy machinery. It will also have adapted toilets, changing rooms and laundry, with accessible routes from the outside and inside of the enclosure, and will contemplate a reform of the envelope to adapt it, modification of supply and sanitation facilities, installation of new LED lighting, ventilation and air conditioning. The building will be accessed by a front ramp on the right. It will have a reception hall, kitchen, dining room with a covered terrace linked to the existing fireplace, outdoor playground and shaded terraces with vegetation.
"Vegetation takes center stage in this project, seeking peace and tranquility, with a small garden and plants in common areas, as well as an ecological roof throughout the building, taking advantage of the existing structure," they add from the Consistory.
