The José Lima Care Center for the Elderly (Abrigo do Idosos José Lima) in Bom Jesus de Itabapoana is home to 80 elderly men and women. They are those who can no longer care for themselves, have no family to care for them, or whose families are unable to care for them. They need help with all basic daily activities such as eating, dressing and keeping clean; many have mild forms of senility, and about 20 of them are bedridden or confined to wheelchairs.
The care center is cheerful, spacious, airy and scrupulously clean. Social and religious life are mainstays of daily activity. Physical therapy is provided, too.
But the building and much of the furnishing are nearly as aged as the inhabitants. The hospital beds, used by all the elderly, are creaky and rusting, with hand cranks to raise and lower the head or feet. Many of the hand cranks have broken over the decades, and those that do work are hard work for the carers to turn. The old mattresses are supplemented with wooden boards beneath and good foam on top, but are certainly not ideal for comfort for arthritic backs and hips. Side panels are added at night and during naps to prevent anyone accidentally falling out. A few adult cribs - exactly like a child’s wooden crib - are used for the same purpose.
The care center is cheerful, spacious, airy and scrupulously clean. Social and religious life are mainstays of daily activity. Physical therapy is provided, too.
But the building and much of the furnishing are nearly as aged as the inhabitants. The hospital beds, used by all the elderly, are creaky and rusting, with hand cranks to raise and lower the head or feet. Many of the hand cranks have broken over the decades, and those that do work are hard work for the carers to turn. The old mattresses are supplemented with wooden boards beneath and good foam on top, but are certainly not ideal for comfort for arthritic backs and hips. Side panels are added at night and during naps to prevent anyone accidentally falling out. A few adult cribs - exactly like a child’s wooden crib - are used for the same purpose.
The purchase of a full set modern hospital beds with motorized lifts to aid in comfort and care has been estimated at around US$50,000.
Friends of Campos is happy to support this project to bring comfort and improved quality of care to these dear residents. We welcome your donations of any size.
The care center is run by the sisters of the Instituto Religioso da Imaculada Coração de Maria e São Miguel Arcanjo (Religious Institute of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Saint Michael Archangel), founded in 1976, with the mission “to live and propagate a profound devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary”. The sisters consecrate themselves to a Christian life lived totally in God and dedicate themselves to caring for the elderly and to the formation of children. Besides the José Lima Care Center for the Elderly, they also run several schools providing pre-school, elementary and middle-school Catholic education for over a thousand students, including those from low-income families. They also reach more than ten thousand young people via catechism offered in parishes and rural chapels around the region.
Friends of Campos is happy to support this project to bring comfort and improved quality of care to these dear residents. We welcome your donations of any size.
The care center is run by the sisters of the Instituto Religioso da Imaculada Coração de Maria e São Miguel Arcanjo (Religious Institute of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Saint Michael Archangel), founded in 1976, with the mission “to live and propagate a profound devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary”. The sisters consecrate themselves to a Christian life lived totally in God and dedicate themselves to caring for the elderly and to the formation of children. Besides the José Lima Care Center for the Elderly, they also run several schools providing pre-school, elementary and middle-school Catholic education for over a thousand students, including those from low-income families. They also reach more than ten thousand young people via catechism offered in parishes and rural chapels around the region.