Many families struggle to care for elderly | Adina Donovan Home to expand, relocate

While noting that many local families are struggling to care for their elderly relatives, Minister of Health & Social Development Carvin Malone has said plans are well underway to expand the Adina Donovan Home for the Elderly.

Malone said the initiative is vital, despite permanent plans to relocate the Road Town-based facility.

“We have seen the need for the provision of additional accommodation at the Adina Donovan Home based on the demand for services both in terms of administration and elderly care,” Malone said at the recent sitting of the House of Assembly.

“We have plans for and we have started work on another site for the new home, but in the interim, the 20 beds that affords itself at the current home is not sufficient.”

He continued: “It is our intention to repurpose the top floor of the old Peebles Hospital to address some of these needs, and the Public Works Department is currently preparing the necessary designs for approval for retrofitting of this space.”

Families struggling

In the meantime, Minister Malone said government has placed additional funds to expand the At-Home Programme for seniors.

While he did not provide any figures in relation to the cost of the undertaking, Malone said: “We were recently granted approval through the budgetary process to look at ways in which greater assistance could be given.”

“I am aware that many families struggle to meet the demands of caring for elderly relatives. Hence, this government’s aim is to respond to the situation more forcefully and more immediately,” he added.

Malone further said the government is committed to maintaining the dignity and the independence of all seniors while meeting their social, educational, healthcare, recreational and social services need within the institutions, their homes and the communities.

“We will make sure that their quality of life continues to go up,” he said.
Meanwhile, government’s decision to eventually relocated the elderly home comes months after opposition legislator Julian Fraser lobbied for the operations of the facility to be relocated to the old wing of the aforementioned hospital.

He, however, did not give any reasons for his suggestion other than to say: “I am now more convinced that I was right. It is something that has to happen.”

He was speaking on the campaign trail of the February 2019 General Elections.