Old age homes in Namibia’s capital Windhoek are implementing a range of stringent measures to protect their residents from contracting corona virus following a surge in cases.
The homes have since closed their doors to visitors while movement out of the homes has been restricted except for emergencies.
“I have lived a full life and I am not scared of death. What is meaningful to me at this moment is to see my children and grandchildren frequently. That is all that matters,” Bekkie Bolster, a resident said.
The 86-year-old who lives at Susanne Grau Heim, one of Windhoek’s oldest retirement homes is finding it very difficult to adjust to the new normal especially the lack of visits from her loved ones.
Last week, the Health Ministry instructed old age homes to close doors to visitors as well as limit the movement of residents, a situation that has left most residents in despair as they long for their loved ones.
According to Health Minister Kalumbi Shangula, most of the coronavirus fatalities recorded in Namibia are people of the older generation thus residents of elderly homes should not be allowed to go out till the situation normalizes.
“It is recommended that at this juncture, all people working at old age homes should be accommodated at the facilities wherever possible so that they do not mingle with others. This is to avoid putting the elderly at more risk as they are highly vulnerable,” Shangula said.
The country has so far recorded 65 COVID-19 related deaths out of 6, 906 positive cases.
According to the home’s secretary Marcele Kroll, the home that houses about a 100 residents has since closed its doors while the staff members are subjected to screenings every morning when they report for work.
“From this week none of our senior residents are allowed to leave the premises unless they have to do so for medical reasons,” Kroll said.
She said they have made arrangements with supermarkets to have groceries delivered at the home.
Kroll added that the residents are well catered for but the only problem is that they miss their families and this is taking a toll on their overall mental health.
The government owned Katutura old age home has also implemented the same measures with residents not receiving visitors but can still receive parcels from loved ones which are left at the gate.
According to Alex Kano, the senior caretaker, they encourage their residents to practice social distancing, wear masks and wash their hands regularly.
Since the outbreak, the home invited experts to educate the residents about the disease and the precautions to take to protect themselves.
“We had a team of epidemiologist from the University of Namibia to teach our residents about what COVID-19 is and how they can protect themselves. In terms of being informed, everyone is informed. We have a clinician who comes to check blood pressure and all the vitals,” Kano said.
He added that the residents are also struggling to cope with the new situation and they have social workers who come to speak to them to calm them down.
“You can imagine, it is not a normal life. People are not happy about the arrangement. As human beings we are naturally not meant to be isolated,” Kano said.
The hope is for the situation to normalize soon, Kano said.
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