How you can help 50,000 old people at risk

MEMBERS of Catholic congregations throughout Britain could help to save lives in the next few weeks.
Help the Aged estimates that roughly 50,000 unexpected and unnecessary deaths are likely among elderly people this winter, even if the weather gets no worse. If there is a spell of severe cold, the total could rise to over 60,000.
In the main, these victims will • be frail, hard-up old people living on their own, unvisited and therefore unhelped — often simply because no one realises that they arc alone and at risk.
Parish priests are likely to know the names and addresses of such members of their congregations, although they themselves will probably not have the time to visit them all daily during a long, cold spell.
Congregation members who ask for names, and follow up with a personal visit, could be the means of saving an elderly person from a death caused by cold.
In Britain, only a very few elderly people die each year from cold alone. (Hypothermia, in medical terms). Old people in most countries abroad are not so lucky, which is why Help the Aged is grateful to all the Catholic Church congregations who so generously contribute blankets and used clothing for distribution overseas.
But cold weather is, indirectly, responsible for the 60,000 extra deaths all too likely to occur among Britain's old people this winter.
Extreme cold, for the elderly, greatly increases their susceptibility to such killer diseases as bronchitis, influenza and pneumonia.
Old people have brittle bones, easily broken' by any fall on icy, slippery roads or steps, and broken bones can lead to fatal pneumonia.
Help the Aged has the following suggestions for all cold weather "good neighbours": Don't be shy about calling even on someone you do not know, to ask if you can help with shopping when roads are icy.
2. Offer to order paraffin, or solid fuel, if it is running short; check that he or she has a hot water bottle and if the living room is the only warm room in the house offer to help move the old person's bed into it.
3. Discover tactfully if a shortage of warm clothing or bedding is due to a shortage of money. If so, the local Social Services Department should be able to help. They can also advise in situations where gas or electricity has been cut off due to unpaid bills.