Elderly abandoned in retirement homes: the appeal to be signed

Seniors alone and abandoned in retirement homes: the appeal for the right to health and the petition to be signed.

We help abandoned elderly people in retirement homes: the appeal to be signed – Universomamma.it (Adobe Stock)

A signature for the right to care and protection for the elderly in social, health and social welfare residences, where unfortunately the Covid-19 pandemic has hit hard, with numerous deaths among the guests and many infected also among the staff. It is the petition launched by Amnesty International Italia.

The humanitarian organization highlights serious deficiencies and discriminatory treatment against elderly guests in nursing homes and health care residences (RSA), which have compromised his health, even life, and the right to visit family members, in compliance with safety regulations

Amnesty International Italia report a situation of abandonment of the elderly in the RSA, described in the report “Abandon yourself“, Which collects the testimonies of the families of the elderly and also of the operators of the structures. The research points to the safety problems in the structures, the shortage of personnel and the insufficiency of protective devices. All factors that have aggravated the Coronavirus infections in one already delicate and risky situation. Hence the appeal to sign the petition for the right to health of the elderly in retirement homes.

We help abandoned elderly people in retirement homes: Amnesty International’s appeal

The title is emblematic, “Abandon yourself“, And it is the Amnesty International Italia report on violations of the rights of the elderly in social, health and social welfare residences during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The report is the result of research conducted in structures in Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto and highlights the gaps in the Italian institutions at national, regional and local level in taking timely measures to protect the life and dignity of older people in nursing homes during the Covid-19 health emergency.

Amnesty International denuncia the delay or total lack of adequate measures per protect the elderly in retirement homes and RSA e care workers who work in these facilities. According to Amnesty, these shortcomings have caused real ones violations of the right to life, than to health and also non-discrimination of guests and operators.

Between criticalities detected during the pandemic and reported by Amnesty International are:

the untimely closure to external visits of the structures,
the failure or late support of institutions in the supply of personal protective equipment (Dpi) to the same structures,
the delay in performing swabs on patients and healthcare personnel.

At the beginning of the Coronavirus epidemic in Italy, many patients discharged from hospitals were transferred to the RSA despite having Covid-19 or symptoms compatible with the disease. Transfers arranged without the application of safety protocols or check whether the conditions of adequacy of the facilities for these patients.

Gaps and criticalities have favored the spread of the virus within the residential and care facilities for the elderly. A condition that unfortunately has affected the high mortality, with thousands of elderly guests who have died since the start of the pandemic after contracting Covid-19.

A situation that according to Amnesty International confirms the “De-prioritization” of this type of aids compared to hospitals. This happened despite the warnings of theWHO, which since the beginning of the pandemic had declared the elderly population among the most vulnerable to Coronavirus.

There is still a lack of information, uniform throughout the national territory, on tampons to be carried out within the social, health and social care residences for the elderly, as part of a continuous screening.

The Amnesty International report also contains numerous testimonies of health workers and family members of elderly patients of facilities that have reported the impossibility or obstacles encountered in trying to hospitalize guests with Covid-19 or with flu-like symptoms. Many elderly people were left in the RSA instead of being hospitalized, by decision of regional resolutions, as happened in Lombardy, and not following a clinical evaluation. QThis has resulted in a failure to protect the right to life, health and non-discrimination, Amnesty International points out.

The health emergency then aggravated the chronic problems of the structures, such as the shortage of personnel which led to a worsening of the working conditions of the care workers, subjected to severe stress and exposed to a greater risk of contagion, also for theinsufficiency of personal protective equipment (Dpi), incorrect information on their use or the lack of adequate security protocols. Conditions that have also exposed the staff of social welfare facilities for the elderly to the dangers of contagion.

From here the Amnesty International appeal, to the Ministry of Health and to the competent Directorates General of the Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto Regions, to protect the right to health of the elderly in retirement homes and RSAs.

Amnesty denounces real human rights violations towards the elderly and asks the authorities to:

ensure in a timely manner full access to frequent and regular tampons for the elderly residing in the facilities, for health personnel and visitors, in addition to the adequate and continuous supply of Dpi for the facilities;
guarantee full and equal access to hospitals and health services for elderly residents of social and health centers. The rights of resident elderly people must be at the center of the response and significant visits and contacts with families must be guaranteed, in compliance with the virus prevention measures;
establish an adequate mechanism for assessing and developing the capacities of residential social and health facilities for older people so that they can ensure an appropriate level of infection prevention and control;
ensure full transparency in the collection and publication of all relevant data on the deaths of elderly people in residential and health care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To sign the appeal: https://www.amnesty.it/appelli/firma-diritto-salute-anziani-case-di-riposo/?utm_source=DEM&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=DEM8483

We also remember “every elder is your grandfather“, The appeal addressed to young people last summer by Pope Francis to make their closeness felt to the elderly.