Seventeen elderly men in the sultanate have got foster families to look after their needs and care for them. The elderly found their new lease of life with the help of Ihsaan Association.
Speaking to Muscat Daily, Jokha Mohammed Khamis al Farsi, head and the founder of Ihsaan Association, said, “In 2018, we started the initiative and till now we have been successful in providing foster families for 17 elderly persons from all parts of Oman. However, most of them are in Muscat governorate.”
The aim of the association is to strengthen the bonds between members of the society and within families, Jokha said.
“Children need to understand the importance of caring for parents and assisting them during old age.”
Being with a family in old age is more comfortable, she added.
“We provide alternative families for older people who have no children or relatives to care for. These foster families provide them all that they need from lodging, food to healthcare. We also cooperate with the Ministry of Social Development to help these families by paying for a helper and increasing the social security allowance for the elderly.”
Talking about the other services provided by the association, Jokha said, “We provide medical aid for the elderly at low prices, including prosthetic limbs for individuals with limited income. We will continue with our awareness campaign to cover all the wilayats.
“Our association also provides free ambulance services to help the elderly and disabled reach hospitals for routine check-ups and other healthcare needs.”
“We have provided 2,000 elderly persons access to hospitals in Oman so far,” she added.
“We have trained some members of families to drive ambulances to transport their sick parents to hospitals.”
The association has four ambulances.
“We give names to every ambulance, such as Kafah or Struggle, Atta or Giving, Hiba or Gift, and Amal or Hope to spread reassurance among members of society,” she said.
The association launched another initiative this year to transfer the dead from their homes to hospital centres and then to cemeteries to relieve their families.
“We hope to get financial support from private companies in our efforts to transport the elderly to hospitals,” Jokha said.
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