Care for the elderly

Every year, Obra Social Caja Madrid actively seeks out solutions to improve the quality of life of senior citizens through projects that foster their integration and participation in society.

Our efforts have supported innovative and effective projects to promote active ageing and provide care for elderly persons who are no longer self-sufficient.

In 2008 such initiatives were funded with €29.7 million, highlighted by:

Calls for projects in support and care for the elderly and their families

The 124 projects approved in 2008 reached 62,996 persons directly and indirectly benefited another 190,427.

In response to one of the more pressing needs of society's elderly population, Caja Madrid sponsored infrastructure projects to build, purchase or expand day and/or overnight centres and residences.

Support was also given to initiatives promoting active ageing and healthy living habits.

Call for projects dealing with Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative pathologies associated with the ageing process

The 2008 edition reached a total of 109 programmes that provided assistance to 12,699 persons and their families, including 4,633 individuals with Alzheimer's, 4,961 Parkinson's sufferers and 3,105 people afflicted by other neurodegenerative disorders.

The main lines of action in these areas were:

• Promotion of projects providing therapy, rehabilitation projects and "breaks for care-givers".
• Collaboration in:
  • Volunteer organisation.
  • Home assistance.
  • Construction, refurbishment and fitting-out of day and residential centres.

Other social assistance programmes for the elderly

In addition to the funding granted through its calls, Obra Social Caja Madrid supported 32 one-off projects benefiting 1,004,522 persons. These activities seek to deliver social-medical assistance to dependent elderly people.

Other programmes of note include:

• Adapting homes for the disabled elderly.
• Speech therapy for sufferers of Alzheimer's disease.
• Encouraging and organising senior citizens to transmit their cultural and artistic knowhow to school children and members of other social groups with limited access to the world of culture to more fully integrate them into the information society.
• Ongoing support for the publication of practical handbooks to inform, educate and raise public awareness on Alzheimer's disease.

Social centres for the elderly

Obra Social Caja Madrid has 41 social centres known as "Spaces for the Elderly" that are used by 121,259 beneficiaries in the regions of Madrid, Castilla la Mancha and Ceuta. Apart from serving as meeting places, these centres conduct activities to improve the quality of life of our older citizens by fostering their social integration and participation in the community, lifelong training and introductory courses in new technologies.

The Spaces for the Elderly network hosted 4,440 activities in 2008, spanning such varied areas as preventive health, citizenship, current affairs and new technologies, arts and crafts, performing arts and culture, leisure and pastimes.