Age Care Association helps courageous Beryl

Sat, Apr 24 2010

Age Care Association helps courageous Beryl

This week I was privileged to be able to visit the rehabilitation centre at the Hospital Maritimo in Torremolinos. This is where patients come to try and regain their lives after accidents, operations and strokes, etc. I went there to see Beryl Pearson, a lovely lady who has been helped by Age Care since her operation last September. Following a problem with circulation, Beryl had to have her right leg removed above the knee. Beryl, who is aged 82 and lives alone, had to go into a nursing home to recover after her operation, but with the help and support of Age Care Association she was able to return home.

This year she was told that she could have a prosthetic limb fitted and so began the long hard journey of getting used to and learning how to walk with this new limb. Beryl attends the rehabilitation centre five days a week until they are satisfied that she can manage to walk unaided. The staff here are very caring and helpful, but Beryl does not speak Spanish and so our voluntary social worker, Arnau, goes to the centre to liaise on her behalf with the staff, the doctor and the technicians who are supplying her limb, her special shoes and her wheelchair. I was very moved to see this amazing, elderly lady who is so full of life coping with this big challenge that life has thrown at her, and I wish her well.
Arnau, who is Dutch has lived on the coast for 11 years and helps many of the people who contact Age Care, he liaises with the Spanish Social Services and also the hospitals. This week he has been chasing appointments for people at the hospitals in Malaga and also worked with the Ayuntamiento at Mijas to provide temporary care for a patient who is waiting for a decision on long term help from Social Services.

This is the kind of help that Age Care Association can offer, but no job is too small, another volunteer this week has brought library books to a housebound client, whilst Judith helped take a carer shopping whilst someone sat with her sick husband, David helped translate at the court with a legal problem for another client. Age Care Association does not charge for its services, but clients are welcome to make a donation if they wish. The Association is a non-profit making registered charity.

About Age Care Association

Age Care Association is a fully registered, non-profit making organisation staffed entirely by volunteers. Our Spanish registration number is 6282 – CIF – G92487602 (Registro de Asociaciones de Andalucia). The majority of our work is helping older British people living in the Province of Malaga, but we do not exclude other nationalities that speak English. We provide welfare information, practical support and two help lines (Telephones: 691761088, and 655903182). The Association also has a hospital and home visiting team. Other volunteers visit people in Care Homes when necessary. As part of our work we have repatriated some individuals to the UK, where there are more caring facilities and access to benefits unavailable in Spain. Some of our volunteers have had careers in nursing, education, psychology and other caring professions and are accustomed to listening in a sympathetic and kind manner. We work closely with the British Consulate, Royal British Legion, and branches of the International Lions.