Senior Citizens' Line addresses an open letter to the Minister of Health
We want the Department to define more clearly who may be at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 and to ensure that these people have options available to them to protect themselves more, for example by using voluntary help. You can read the full text of the letter here:
Prof. MUDr. Roman Prymula, CSc., Ph.D. Minister of Health Ministry of Health Palackého náměstí 375/4 128 01 Prague 2
Prague, 8.10.2020
Request to define at-risk populations for whom the COVID-19 infection is likely to have a more serious course and to set up preventive recommendations for these populations to follow
Dear Minister, We are writing to request your comments on the Strategic Plan for the Protection of Populations at Risk. During the spring emergency, we felt it made sense that at-risk populations were protected by measures in the form of dedicated shoppinghours, recommendations not to go out to places with large concentrations of people, and at the same time could use volunteer help to provide basic needs. This reduced the risk of infection and possible severe disease in these populations. Similar measures to protect at-risk populations are lacking during the current emergency and we ask you to implement them. We are aware of the expertise of your department and assume that you already have a larger number of of data that can be used to more accurately predict for whom the course of COVID-19 will be severe. With this in mind, we ask you to define these groups of persons and formulate recommendations that will enable them to reduce their risk of infection. We would like to avoid over-generalisation of risk groups, for example by age. At the same time, with reference to the negative effects of long-term isolation on a person's mental and health condition, we believe that overly restrictive measures are not appropriate either. Clearly and clearly formulated recommendations can provide guidance to at-risk groups on how to protect themselves and, on the other hand, create room for clearly targeted civic initiative and mutual solidarity and assistance. The Senior Citizens' Helpline is a crisis assistance service for the elderly. In the period from March 2020, we have activated together with the Junák - Czech Scout organization a system of voluntary assistance to at-riskm residents in all regions of the Czech Republic, which provided contactless assistance in the form of, for example, delivering shopping, picking up medicines, etc. We are ready to reactivate this system of assistance, and to expand the target areas of our assistance, so that together with you we can help prevent the destabilization of the health care system in the Czech Republic. In order to activate this aid really effectively, we ask you for the above.
Thank you Sincerely On behalf of the Senior Citizens' Helpline of Elpida o.p.s. Mgr. Kateřina Bohatá, Head of the Senior Citizens' Line Mgr. Klára Gramppová Janečková, Deputy Head of the Senior Citizens Line
Senior Citizens' Line 800 200 007 An anonymous and free telephone service of the Elpida organisation, which is intended not only for seniors but also for persons who care for them. You can also contact the helpline staff by e-mail. The psychologists of the Senior Citizens' Helpline have prepared two sets of ten. The Dementia Ten helps you cope with a loved one's serious illness.
Elpida Elpida means hope in Greek. But it is also the name of an organization that helps seniors become a confident and respected part of society. In the spirit of the Old's Cool motto, Elpida is changing the way people look at old age - it runs the Elpida Educational and Cultural Centre for seniors fromPrague and the Senior Crisis Line, founded the brand Socks from Grandma, publishes the magazine VITAL, and organises the intergenerational OLD's COOL festival. In short, she is trying to make Czech seniors lead a full & happy life.