ALZHEIMER'S DAY CARE CENTER IS HEALING FOR PATIENTS AND A GLIMMER OF HOPE TO THEIR RELATIVES

The Alzheimer's Day Care Center, which was gained to Konya in 2016 with the support of Karatay Municipality, has been serving hundreds of Alzheimer's patients and their relatives for six years. The center, which has been carrying on its activities in cooperation with the Alzheimer's Association of Turkey, Necmettin Erbakan University, and the Provincial Directorate of Health, is highly spoken of by many national and international organizations, especially the World Health Organization. The patient relatives are also very pleased with the service provided by the specialists in their fields and the friendly staff. The patient relatives stated that Alzheimer's Day Care Center provides a glimmer of hope for their elders and a great sigh of relief for them.

The Alzheimer's Day Care Center, which has carried out activities in cooperation with the Karatay Municipality, Alzheimer's Association of Turkey, and Necmettin Erbakan University, continues to serve patients with Alzheimer's in its two-story building with a garden.

The center, which also discontinued its activities due to the pandemic that influenced the whole world, and started to serve again when the influence of the pandemic decreased, is a glimmer of hope for the patients and their relatives with specialists in their fields and friendly staff.

THEY SAY "STOP" THE DISEASE WITH ACTIVITIES

Beginning, early and mid-term patients with Alzheimer's, taken from their homes with the shuttle allocated by Karatay Municipality every day, both have a high old time in the center with social activities prepared for them throughout the day and also perform special works that will contribute to their health.

In this context, patients with Alzheimer's receive special support to slow down Alzheimer's disease throughout the day, with activities prepared according to their hobbies and abilities. In the center, which has activity and seminar rooms, a kitchen, a resting and dining room, mental activities such as concept recognition and word derivation are carried out, as well as activities such as writing or reading poems, stories and ditties. In the center where many other activities such as cutting/gluing, tying up, stringing, balancing, and psycho-motor activities are carried out, walking, daily regular sports, breathing and rhythm exercises, singing, special day celebrations, informative and educational programs, seminars and meetings are also held.

TURKEY'S FIRST CENTER SUPPORTED BY A UNIVERSITY

Patients who benefit from Alzheimer's Day Care Center, the first university-supported center in Turkey, are given special attention. It is attached great importance ta academic support at every stage, including nutrition, personal development, therapies for patients, and many other health-related studies and social activities

The center is also Necmettin Erbakan University’s Education-Care-Application, and Research Center for the Elderly and Disabled. In this context, students from departments of the university such as Social Services, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Rehabilitation, and Psychology come to the center and take care of Alzheimer's patients.

SELECTED BY THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION AS THE BEST PRACTICE EXAMPLE

Alzheimer's Day Living Center is frequently praised by the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as the Ministry of Health. As a result of his research and examination on projects conducted in the Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, Croatia, Kazakhstan, and Turkey in the recent years, the World Health Organization declared Karatay Alzheimer's Day Care Center as a "Best Practice Example" in the field of integration of health and social sectors in providing long-term care in Turkey.

The Center is also a Great Service for Patients' Relatives

The center, where patients spend most of the day, is of great importance not only for patients or the academic world, but also in terms of reducing the burden of patients' relatives. While the patients who benefit from the center spend time in the center all day long, the patient relatives can uneventfully maintain their lives at their homes or workplaces.

 The center, which also provides guidance and counseling services, supports the patient relatives during the extremely difficult patient care process, providing relief to a large extent. Families are informed at every stage such as training for their patients and health studies, they are frequently brought together with specialists in their fields, and exchange their views.

MY MOM SEES THE CENTER AS A SCHOOL

Medine İleri, the daughter of Fatma Çelebi, who has Alzheimer's disease, states that her mother's disease has not progressed since she went to Alzheimer's Day Care Center and that her mother sees the center as a school.

Medine Ileri says: “My mother has been going there all the time since the center opened. Since that day, the disease did not progress. We are very pleased with the services of our center. My mother's care at home has also become easier thanks to this place. I would like to thank Karatay Municipality very much. May Allah bless you. When my mother goes there, we can do our chores, do our shopping at home, and take a rest. If she is at home, we cannot leave her and go anywhere. We had some difficulties when the center was closed during the pandemic period. Now, when it reopened, we started to spare time for both our routine work and our social life. I pray every day to Karatay Municipality and the authorities there. The service provided free of charge for our parents is also a blessing for us. My mother loves going there and sees this place as a school. When she comes home in the evening, we ask her how her day was. She almost could speak before. Now she tells about the food that she eats and the activities of the day one by one. This service of Karatay Municipality is so valuable for all of us. I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this service, but especially our Mayor of Karatay.

MY FATHER IS MUCH HAPPIER NOW

Fatma Can, who sends her father off to the center every morning, also emphasizes that her father has been much happier since he went to the center.

Fatma Can, who stated that the health care center officials recommended the Alzheimer's Day Care Center, said that the officials of the center contacted them immediately and expressed the following about the center; “Our family doctor from the Health care Center recommended us this center. We applied, and they came and took my father the next day by shuttle. My father is happy to go to the Alzheimer's Day Care Center and is much happier now. He sings songs and spends time with his friends. My mother is also confined to bed at home. When my father goes to the center, I can take care of my mother much more easily. May Allah Bless our Karatay Municipality and everyone working in the center for providing this service to us.”

CENTER EMPLOYEES ADOPT OUR PATIENTS AS THEIR PARENTS

 Ayşe Uysal, another patient's relative, who stated that her children applied to the center, says that their patient had difficulty even walking before they started to go to the center, but now he has made significant progress in this regard.

Ayşe Uysal, who thanked Karatay Municipality and everyone who brought the center to Konya, said: “Our children applied, and our patient continues to the center. We are pleased with both the Alzheimer's Day Care Center and especially the shuttle application. Shuttle staff kindly greet and take my spouse every morning. They always leave with the same love and also by adopting them as their parents. In the evening, they take him home with the same care. Before starting the center, our patient could not walk, could not eat, and was having a very difficult time. Now he is very comfortable and can do everything by himself. We are also much more comfortable. He is also so happy. Thank you very much to Karatay Municipality”.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICE MEETS PATIENTS BY GETTING BLENDED WITH LOVE,

Prof. Dr. Figen Güney, the President of the Konya Branch of Alzheimer's Association, who noted that the Alzheimer's Day Care Center works with an understanding that prioritizes the well-being of patients and their relatives, states that they set quality service at the center as their target.

 “Saying that our center has been providing active patient care and serving as a Day Care Center since 2016, Prof. Dr. Figen Güney noted that 100 patients benefited from the center since 2016 and emphasized the following; “Due to the health of our patients during the pandemic, we had to take a break from our activities for a while. We started accepting our patients again in June. Currently, 20 patients benefit from our center. Our center was chosen by the World Health Organization as a pilot project in the world in 2019 with the cooperation of the university, local government, and non-governmental organizations. We enable our patients to do occupational therapies such as stringing, picturing, painting, gluing, and knitting in order to spend their time actively and to be self-contained. Apart from that, we have music activities. Both the psychologist appointed by our university and the volunteer psychologist of our association support patient relatives once a week. Our patients are taken from their homes and brought to my center with the shuttle that our Karatay Municipality has allocated to our patients. This center is a vivid center that meets the proverb, "teamwork makes the dream work" .

CENTER IS A VERY IMPORTANT SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY PROJECT

Hasan Kılca, the Mayor of Karatay, stated that they consider the Alzheimer's Day Care Center a crucial social responsibility project and mentioned that the center is great hope for the patients with Alzheimer's in Konya

Mayor Hasan Kılca said, “Our patients are taken from their homes one by one by our shuttles and brought safely to the Alzheimer's Day Care Center under the supervision of our specialists throughout the journey. Our patients are rehabilitated and treated in our center. They spend time with social and cultural activities as they do in the nursery. After rehabilitation, they are taken to their homes. Great things have been accomplished so far. From now on, we will continue approaching the subject with the same sensitivity. As all stakeholders, our aim is to put a smile on the faces of both our patients and their relatives and make them happy. We, the Karatay Municipality, have new projects that more patients can benefit from and continue to work on this issue.”