Everyone needs a friend ![Laura-and-Gitta-for-Pic-of-Week[1]](http://foe.fusio.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Laura-and-Gitta-for-Pic-of-Week1-300x190.jpg)
![Laura-and-Gitta-for-Pic-of-Week[1]](http://foe.fusio.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Laura-and-Gitta-for-Pic-of-Week1.jpg)
As we get older our circle of family and friends may decrease. This is where Friends of the Elderly can help. Its nice to know that there will be a friendly face calling around for a chat.
Loneliness and social isolation can impact negatively on someone’s health and well being and it is now recognised as a public health issue.
The aim of this programme is to bring friendship and companionship to our older members who feel lonely and socially isolated in their homes or in healthcare facilities.
Can we help you?
- Would you like companionship and someone to talk to?
- Are you on your own or feeling lonely?
- Are you finding it increasingly difficult to get out of the house?
We can arrange for you to be introduced to a friendly volunteer who will be able to visit you in your own home over a period to be agreed by you.
The visitation programme is ideally suited to people over 70 who have little social contact or who feel alone and who would like to make a new friend. Currently the Visitation Service operates in Dublin and in the Dunboyne district.
The service is confidential and free of charge.
About our volunteers
The role of the volunteer is to provide informal, social support and to form a trusting relationship with their older friend. Each volunteer makes regular visits to their older friend at a time suitable to both. They will take the time to sit and listen and share a cup of tea and life’s ups and downs or help you reconnect with your community in various ways – going out to lunch, a shopping trip, or a visit to a museum or a park.
- All volunteers are garda vetted, reference checked and given in-house volunteer training.
- They are thoughtfully matched with older friends based on mutual interests, personalities and location.
- You will have the same volunteer visiting you each week as long as they can.
- Volunteers and their older friends are supported by our programme coordinators.
How to avail of the service
If you would like a Friends of the Elderly volunteer to call around once a week for a friendly chat or if you are referring an older person to the programme please complete our referral application form or contact us directly: