To reduce the risk of infection, YWCA’s Care & Attention Homes for the Elderly have suspended all visiting arrangements since the outbreak of COVID-19. With no visitors, life becomes dull. In order to entertain the elderly while keeping social distance, Watsons Water’s volunteers organised an online event, “Fun with the Elderly during the Fight against the Epidemic”, to celebrate the Senior Citizens Day with over 150 residents from the Association’s Wan Wah Care & Attention Home for the Elderly. 

The Association’s Tai O Community Work Office invited a volunteer team to provide free haircut service for elderly living in Tai O. 

To avoid travelling long distances, Tai O residents with impaired mobility seldom leave the island. On epidemic influence, elderly stay at home for even longer yet might not be able to meet their family members elsewhere. Hence, the Association invited a volunteer team to visit the elderly and provided free haircut service. 

Exercise can improve one’s physical health and help relax mentally. While people avoid going out during the COVID-19 outbreak, elders are forced to change their habits, such as doing exercise at the park, and some of them get weak as a result of a lack of exercise. To encourage the elderly to make exercise at home a habit, HKYWCA Chi Po Neighbourhood Elderly Centre cooperates with Excellence Fitness to organise two stretching workshops, and share proper techniques and sports knowledge.

Kowloon West Elder Academy Cluster organised two local eco-tours to encourage its trainees to embark upon journey of ecological exploration and protection.  

The first batch of trainees followed the tour guide to Tai Mong Tsai in Sai Kung and found around 10 butterfly species. One of the participants was excited to see his favourite Paris peacock. The tour guide also introduced special plants and insects along the way, to let participants appreciate Hong Kong’s biodiversity.

A.S. Watson Group has been supporting HKYWCA for a long time. From April 23 to May 22, donation boxes will be placed at all PARKnSHOP supermarkets, INTERNATIONAL, TASTE, FUSION, GOURMET, GREAT, FOOD LE PARC and SU-PA-DE-PA to raise fund for our elderly services. Every penny you donate will bring love and care to the needy.

In view of the extra spending on anti-coronavirus goods, Café de Coral offers food coupons to underprivileged elderly in order to lessen their financial burden.

In response to the development of the coronavirus, most of the community facilities have been temporarily closed, causing some elderly who often use the facilities to change their daily habits and even stay at home for a long time to reduce the risk of infection. Long-term home isolation not only affects the emotions of the elderly but also increases the pressure on caregivers.

YWCA Jockey Club Y Care Elderly Centre’s tele-rehabilitation allows patients to work on their rehabilitation at home to maintain their rehab progress during novel coronavirus outbreak.

To become an actor is never an easy task, although some people be interested in Cantonese opera, most of them can only be an audience. Thanks to the Social Welfare Department launching the “Opportunities for the Elderly Project 2019/20”, twelve elderly from YWCA Wan Wah Care & Attention Home for the Elderly join the Cantonese opera project, and playing shows with dozens of young volunteers, to fulfill their dream of being a star on the stage.

In view of the novel coronavirus disease, HKYWCA has launched a series of measures since January 28, to reduce social contacts between the Association’s service users and staff. Although some of the non-emergency services are disturbed under the special work arrangement, we do make good use of technology to help.