Aging Office’s homebound clients almost double this year

While the number of elderly clients at the Man’amko Center is slowly decreasing, the number of its homebound clients is going the other way, almost doubling this year, according to Community and Cultural Affairs Secretary Melvin Faisao yesterday.

From a little over a hundred homebound clients per year, Faisao said the number is now at 220, with 150 on Saipan, 26 on Tinian, and 44 on Rota.

The number of congregates, on the other hand, is slowly going down, according to Aging Office program coordinator Walter Manglona yesterday, mainly because of two factors: death and the relocation of some clients.

From October 2010 to date, the Aging Office recorded 68 congregate clients, a slight decrease from the 80 active clients noted in the previous fiscal year, Manglona said.

For this current year alone, he said the center has lost some 15 to 20 members, many of whom have relocated with their families while others have decided to stop visiting the center.

The Office on Aging, which operates under the DCCA, has two types of clients: congregates or active members who visit the Garapan facility everyday and participate in its activities, and homebound members who receive free meals and visits from caregivers. Both are provided free services by the Aging Center using both local and federal funds.

In order to be eligible to avail of services at the center, a citizen must be 60 years old and above and is able to participate in the program and activities. The same age bracket is used as the eligibility criteria for homebound clients.

Manglona said that many in the community are still confused about the Aging Center, mixing it up with the idea of a nursing home. He clarified that all of the center’s active clients are able to take care of themselves. Also, unlike nursing homes, the Aging Center employs no nursing assistants and aides to perform tasks for its clients.

Manglona said it is the goal of the center to provide assistance to the elderly by organizing activities and events that would enhance their physical skills. He said several activities are lined up for the less active to the most active client.

Dancing classes, softball, and ground golf are among those initiated for the most active senior citizens while computer classes, bingo, and billiard are among the programs organized for the “less active” ones.

Funded by the federal government, the Aging Center also provides free meals and transportation for its active clients.

According to Faisao, the Aging Office was given local funding of $140,000 this fiscal year, a big bulk of which is used for the salary of personnel. From fiscal years 2008 through 2011, the office was allocated $876,000 in federal funds for this five-year cycle.