09 Oct 2014

While many countries especially developed ones have long started senior citizens homes, some developing and non-developed countries are still lagging behind in providing old age home services.

In Botswana, the old age home concept is still relatively new more so that senior citizens have been and continue to be taken care of by their families despite the challenges that the family members face in caring for them.

Due to the constant changing times and work commitments, it seems some Batswana are beginning to understand the roles and advantages of placing their parents in old-age homes.

This concept is finding its way in to the country and already with one such old age home centre in operation, Botswana is destined to see changes in the way senior citizens are cared for. 

In Mokatse, a village situated next to Modipane in the Kgatleng District, some good Samaritans have started an old age home centre called Boikhutsong where elderly people are being taken care of.

In an interview, the founder of the old age home, Ms Onicha Motlhabai said the idea of having an old age home first came into her mind in 1998, as something which her family can run and she held on to the idea until the right time.

Together with her husband, Mr Robert Motlhabai, they registered the Boikhutsong old age home centre as a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in 2011, governed by a board of 10 members.

Ms Motlhabai said the main objective of the home center was to care for the elderly, particularly that the existing many government programmes do not cater for all senior citizens.

She said this has prompted her to act swiftly towards helping government because government alone cannot care for its citizens. 

Ms Motlhabai further said the elders are usually left behind with no one to love and care for them, and “I saw the need to help them because they have made Botswana what it is today and no one can forget their contribution to the development of this nation.”

She noted that they came up with the initiative of having an old age home after they realised that government programs do not favour elders and most of them are left alone with no one to care. This, she said inspired her to come up with the idea.

She added that Boikhutsong is a permanent home for the senior citizens and provides services to them twenty four hours.

Running a new business always has its own challenges, adding that Boikhutsong old age home is no exception as the centre is heralded with enormous challenges that come with taking care of the elders.

“We do not have enough staff, as we all know that old people need so much care hence we need people who will persevere in taking care of them,” said Ms Motlhabai.

She said caring for elders need someone who is humble, patient and tolerant. Some staff members do not last long because working with senior citizens needs someone who understands them and their needs. 

Senior citizens live at the center and care takers also need to sleep over so that they could take care of them during the night, but unfortunately not many can do that, she said. “There are so many elders out there who still need help; I hope this old age home will assist most of them if their families bring them forward,” she said.

Ms Motlhabai said another challenge they faced included lack of transport, adding that the availability of transport could help the centre to transport those who could be taken daily from their homes and returned in the evening. 

She appealed to companies to extend a helping hand to allow those from as far as Oliphant’s drift to get assistance, adding that their intention was to see the senior citizens given utmost care.

In addition, she said the old age home can also admit senior citizens on a temporary basis like during holidays.  Ms Motlhabai urged companies and Batswana at large to come forward to support them noting that old age homes are not meant only for ‘Europeans’ people should not refuse or shy away from the service.

She thanked companies such as Javeria wholesale and Mr Munira Mohammed who helped them with furniture and food.  She further said Mr Tarique Mohammed is assisting them with salaries for staff members while Ms Deborah Albas has helped them with changing the bathroom set for it to suit the elders. 

The centre has not yet secured a donor but the owners intend staging a fundraising dinner on November 1, at Maharajah in Gaborone to raise funds for the home. Ends