With more than 100 users integrated into the project, Espaço Saúde 360º Algarve has a mission for the region: «combat the social problem that is illiteracy in health», verified in the elderly in the Algarve, «through a personalized approach, centered on the citizen and based on local partnerships and collaborations».
The idea came up last year. With the country confined in March, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Espaço Saúde 360º began to identify "a major problem" in the older age group in the Algarve region: "health illiteracy", in other words, the lack of information and knowledge about their own health issues, says Ricardo Valente Santos, responsible for the project to the Sul Informação.
According to Ricardo, this problem is linked to «what is the demographic portrait of the Algarve», being aggravated by factors such as «the high levels of aging» or the «social isolation on the part of some of this population that lives several kilometers from urban centers , with difficulties in accessing transport and the health system”, or even the “lack of adapted social responses”.
The demographic situation in the Algarve «ends up not being completely favourable», with several social problems, «which ends up penalizing those who find themselves in an unfavorable situation».
“The elderly are one of those populations and, let's say, the target population of this project”, emphasizes Ricardo Valente Santos.
After the initial idea, it was already in January that this initiative emerged, which is a «priority» in the Algarve.
This is a project that "ends up being a national pilot", in a region where "more than a quarter of the population is over 65" and where "there are 161 elderly people for every 100 young people, increasing this difference by 5% per year" .
"There is no longer any project with these characteristics to promote health literacy in the elderly, with this model of monitoring and evaluation of users, at national level", emphasizes the official.
Espaço Saúde 360º Algarve works, essentially, with people who are not autonomous, who arrive through the referral of partners, and to whom the project provides a social response.
This initiative also welcomes people who are aware of the project, decide to find out more information and end up contacting the person in charge, finally integrating elderly people who attend Day Centres.
When referenced and welcomed by Space, users are subjected to “what we call an initial 360 assessment”.
First, a semi-structured interview is carried out, with the collection of some personal data. Second, the World Health Organization (WHO) “Quality of Life” questionnaire is applied to “understand where the user is”.
"Thus, we check if you are a person with high or low quality of life, how do you perceive yourself, what are your needs, difficulties and desires", explains Ricardo Valente Santos, stressing that "this data is important because that way we can make a Individual Action Plan, based on the social prescription model, and offering various activities according to the users' tastes and needs».
In a first phase, the purpose is to “teach [the elderly in the Algarve] to fish» but «these people really want the fish».
Therefore, "we try to provide support in the most practical issues of people's own health", but also "we offer their users various activities".
The objective of Espaço Saúde 360º Algarve is, «in these two years, to make 500 users of the Algarve region have an improvement in their quality of life», explains the responsible.
For this, it is necessary that people, who are welcomed in the sessions and dynamic activities, «have an impact of at least 5%, in one of the dimensions of their quality of life. This evolution has to be verified between the initial evaluation and the one that takes place six months after the person is integrated in the project».
Users thus have, through the Individual Action Plan, «access to a set of activities adapted to their needs, such as information sessions on health and disease prevention, lectures and workshops nutrition, navigation teachings on the National Health Service (SNS) portal, adapted physical activity and yoga».
In addition to all these activities, the Space also has «cognitive stimulation exercises» as this is one more way of working «memory, attention, concentration and cognition», as well as «some aspects more directed towards combating isolation, which usually manifests itself in feelings of depression, anguish, stress or even anxiety».
Users also enjoy exercises to promote socio-emotional skills, meetings with patient associations, psychosocial assistance, sessions on medicine literacy and other health and well-being activities, already promoted by partner entities in the community.
The project also seeks to ensure that users have sufficient knowledge so that they do not resort to emergency and health services so often, even more so during the pandemic.
With the confinement of the country, the Espaço Saúde 360º Algarve was also affected. The poor accessibility of elderly people in the Algarve to the internet conditioned their access to the activities proposed by the project. Ricardo and Débora Silva (project technician) had to start thinking about a way to reach users.
In January, «we were forced to go home and our heads started to wander, thinking about how we could apply the project, with everyone in confinement», confesses Ricardo Valente Santos.
It was at that moment that “we had to find ways to reinvent ourselves”.
The project then began to carry out assessments, which were previously in person, by phone or through social networks, and to streamline and adapt the activities and sessions planned to the virtual call platforms online.
For elderly people with poor internet or computer accessibility, and even for those with little or no digital literacy, Débora had the idea of sending letters with a small monthly summary of the Individual Action Plan, to the home of each user referenced by the Space , with various physical activity exercises and some cooking recipes.
«We then started to send a monthly letter with a summary of the User's Individual Action Plan. Even if you do not participate in the activities, we also send the physical exercises and cooking recipes that are given in the sessions», explains Débora Silva, the project's technician.
As for the role of Ricardo Valente Santos in the project, it is based on the planning, organization and monitoring of activities. «I supervise and monitor all dimensions of the project, from communication to partnerships, which are, let's say, my central focus».
Débora, on the other hand, is more present in monitoring Space users and volunteers.
Ricardo Valente Santos admits that, so far, «the feedback that has been given to us is very positive», not only by the users who are integrated, but also by the network of project partners.
Espaço Saúde 360º is now trying to establish protocols with several municipalities in the Algarve, in order to be able to reach the elderly in the region more easily.
starting in Faro, «since this is where we have our headquarters», the Space is expanding its geographical area of operation, having already arrived in São Brás de Alportel. Ricardo hopes to reach six more Algarve municipalities by the end of 2022 (when the project ends), «the next municipalities being Tavira, Castro Marim and Alcoutim».
These partnerships are “very important”, since the Municipal Councils are responsible for “the identification of users”. «Also the provision of spaces for carrying out activities is one of the roles of the municipalities».
This initiative, «inspired by the guidelines and macro objectives defined in the Health Literacy Action Plan 2019-2021, of the General Directorate of Health, is aligned with the principles of social and territorial cohesion».
The Espaço Saúde 360º Algarve Project is supported by the Algarve Regional Operational Promotion Program (CRESC Algarve) and by Portugal Inovação Social, through European Union Funds.
Now, with the return to normality, another challenge is imposed on the project: making the elderly return to activities in person.
Even with all these difficulties, the manager admits that this project "has been very challenging", wanting to replicate it to other areas of the country, "in order to promote the social and territorial cohesion that we so much advocate and with which our project is lined up".
With several ups and downs over the last few months of the project, Ricardo and Débora state that, together with the team, «we are giving everything to achieve this goal».
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