Government inaugurates Dar San Ġużepp elderly home in Għajnsielem
The Dar San Ġużepp elderly home in Għajnsielem was inaugurated by Prime Minister Robert Abela, who described it as a home that offers quality of life to the Gozitan elderly.
A government statement read that the home, which began welcoming its first elderly residents in recent months, has 120 beds spread over four floors.
The home meets high standards and includes spacious areas open for residents' enjoyment, it said.
Abela said that the location had potential for various projects, but the government chose to establish a home for the Gozitan elderly.
"The choice was not only the government's. It was the government with the Church and the private sector collaborating to offer the service. There is no better example of how we want to work together," Abela said.
Referring to the strategy for Gozo for the next 10 years, saying that improving the quality of life for all Gozitans, including the elderly, is a top priority,
Abela spoke about the need for the elderly to remain active, both when living independently within the community and when entering residential care.
He emphasised that the country's demographic situation can be exploited so that the elderly who enter residential care remain active and involved in the community.
Abela mentioned various day centres spread around the island, the University of the Third Age, night centres and a wide range of services offered at the heart of Gozitan communities.
Abela said that, along with new community clinics and health centres, efforts will continue to ensure that the elderly live comfortably, with full accessibility to the services offered.
Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri said that this is an important investment, saying the home for the elderly is of the highest level, and will welcome around 120 elderly men and women.
The home will also guarantee a good quality of life he said, adding that the residents who have already moved in and are living here have given very positive feedback.
Before the inauguration, Abela and Camilleri met with the residents and staff of the home. They were accompanied by CareMalta directors who operate Dar San Ġużepp.
The health sector in Gozo
The Gozo Business Chamber notes with satisfaction the opening of the home for the elderly Dar San Ġużepp. The Chamber has always pointed out to the need for investment to be undertaken in the health care sector in Gozo, and this important addition should continue to ensure that our elderly are well taken care of. Gozo faces specific challenges in this respect.
According to census data Gozo has seen significant increases in the 60+ age brackets between 2011 and 2021. According to the same data, while the old age dependency ratio in 2021 in the Malta region stood at 27.1%, in Gozo this was 33.5%.
The Chamber hopes that such an investment will ensure a more equitable situation between the two islands. This together with other recent initiatives such as the opening of the new health centre in Victoria, the new community clinic in Qala, and the new MRI machine at the Gozo General Hospital augurs well for the island of Gozo.
Within this context the Chamber reiterates the need for a new hospital for Gozo. Gozo’s population has increased from a little over 31,000 people in 2011, to a little over 39,000 people in 2021.
While noting the exceptional services currently being provided by health care service providers in Gozo, the Chamber believes that the new hospital will help Gozo on a number of levels. Primarily it will ensure more quality health care services to be delivered from Gozo, thus lessening the need for travel to the main island, sometimes at short notice, for sick persons. Moreover, the new hospital would also complement the activities of the medical school of the Queen Mary University in Gozo.
The recent developments show that quality health care services for Gozitans, should not be an option but a duty of the State, and a right which all Gozitans should have access to.