Portugal
Estrela Parish Council
Since 2018
15th.
GeoSenior is a digital platform that allows you to report vulnerable and at-risk elderly people integrated into the parish intervention network and, from there, direct them towards the most appropriate social responses that will involve residents, shopkeepers and technicians, in order to increase safety and well-being of the elderly population.
The main objective is precisely to help vulnerable and at-risk elderly people. Through GeoSenior, the knowledge that institutions have about the elderly in this area is strengthened, allowing greater adequacy of local responses to their needs. Also thanks to the support of the community, the institutions can act promptly and promote healthier aging, anticipating extreme situations.
The actors participating in the initiative are many; the actions of this initiative aim to combat loneliness and isolation and to increase the number of people in the community aware of these situations, allowing all of them to take action. The participants in the initiative are therefore, theoretically, all citizens of the community and, through their support, the institutions can act promptly for a healthier aging of senior citizens.
This platform also unites the two main actors of the initiative which are the social development teams and the IPSS, who work side by side for the benefit of the older citizens of the community. Furthermore the application is the result of a partnership between the Parochial Council of Estrela with the Social and Parochial Center of São Francisco de Paula and the Assistance of Santos-o-Velho (APSOV).
Estrela is a civil parish and district of Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. The parish is the seat of the Assembly of the Republic (the Portuguese Parliament) and São Bento Mansion, the official residence of the Prime Minister of Portugal. Further landmarks are the Estrela Basilica, the Convento das Bernardas, the Rua das Janelas Verdes building, Rua do Guarda-Mor or Rua do Sacramento. The Estrela Basilica is one of the most interesting attractions of the city, the oldest basilica of the Order of Carmel in Lisbon, its construction dates back to the 1700s and is the destination of thousands of tourist visits every year.
Since 2018, a platform has been in operation in the Estrela area, known as GeoSenior, which allows the reporting of elderly people at risk and the programming of consequent social responses to increase their well-being.
This application makes the response network of the Parish Council of Estrela more effective. Through the signs it is possible to have a deeper knowledge of situations of isolation or that require special attention. The application is the result of a partnership between the Parish Council of Estrela with the Social and Parochial Center of São Francisco de Paula and the Santos-o-Velho Assistance (APSOV).
The Estrela parish invites citizens to report a case when:
- You become aware of a situation of difficulty or isolation
- The person encounters difficulties in carrying out tasks of daily life
- Urgent need for health care is required
- The person shows signs of food shortage
- There are suspicions of abuse or violence
- The person is living in a situation of grave economic need
- If there is a difficulty in taking care of personal hygiene and clothing
- Apparent difficulty in carrying out housing hygiene
- Apparent disorientation and confused language
The most innovative aspect of the app lies in the fact that GeoSenior is a platform that combines social development teams with IPSSs, allowing anonymous reporting of people in situations of fragility which are analyzed by the team which then selects the best resolution for the signage, enabling data protection and a fast and effective link between the Community, the Council and the IPSS.
The objectives, therefore, to help the elderly in difficulty and at the same time to raise awareness in the community have been largely achieved. In fact, in a first phase of reporting, dissemination and awareness raising actions were guaranteed, with greater awareness and attitude of the whole community to assume a role of extreme importance in improving the quality of life of the entire citizenry, promoting their conscious performance in the collective framework of the problems of one's own territory.
This project is also potentially transferable to other territories, in particular in places where the average age of the population is higher, as the results obtained and the data, continuously updated, show that GeoSenior favors collaboration and solidarity within communities, involving residents, traders and technicians with the common goal of promoting the well-being of the elderly population.
Sources
The platform GeoSenior
Web page of Estrela (in Portuguese)
Facebook profile of the Parish of Estrela
Nomination File (in Portuguese)
Join the IOPD
