The elderly in Britain .. between the ghost of Corona and the deadly unit

Ayoub Al-Rimi - London

They are alone in the face of the new Corona virus (Covid 19), which brought them into total isolation, for fear of the epidemic that kills those of their age .. No human being relieves them, and everyone is looking for his individual salvation .. That is the condition of the elderly in Britain after it was imposed on them The government is obligated to avoid homes.

The highlight of this group, which is estimated at 1.5 million people, increased after the government revealed that the number of deaths in care homes is in the thousands, in addition to talk about the government's intention to continue imposing a stone on this category until the end of next month.

A number of shopping centers have tried to isolate this group by giving them priority in food delivery services, and the Ministry of Health has pledged to deliver them medicines, but the problem remains that among these are people who live alone, and no one even communicates with him by phone.

As part of the volunteer work for Muslim communities, Al-Jazeera Net accompanied a number of British youth of Arab origin who volunteered to deliver food and medicine to a number of elderly people.

The conversation has become a dream that the
volunteers knock on the door of Abu Muhammad, the 80-year-old man who spent 45 years of his life in Britain, and who lives alone after the death of his wife .. with a sloppy pace that opens the door and appears with a muzzle trying as much as possible to leave a distance, to make way for young people to enter the food they brought him It is enough for two weeks.

"The illness and what is rumored about it does not frighten me, but what hurts me deeply is the separation of family and friends, and that distrust mixed with the compassion that you glimpse in the eyes of someone approaching you," Abu Muhammad narrates with an apparent sadness in his eyes.

"At this age, you need to feel the presence of others with you, and to see the world that you have made for years moving around," he added.

On what he describes as a deadly unit, which he has learned strongly from the beginning of the quarantine, he says, "Sometimes five or six days pass by that I do not speak to anyone ... I no longer have a family, and even friends, some of whom are either isolated like me or busy with his family to manage the affairs of this crisis."

Abu Muhammad does not hide that the visits of volunteers to his home are what relieves him of the brutality of the house, saying, "I try to contact the lines that a number of mosques have dedicated to talking to the imam or any psychological counselor, just to forget the isolation I am in."

Not only was the aid delivery tour for the elderly of Arab descent, but rather the tour took us to the home of Chris, who is close to his ninth decade, a British citizen, with two children living outside the country.

Finally human beings are knocking on my door .. .. With this phrase that mixes sarcasm with sadness, we received Chris, who confirmed that the Coruna epidemic was the last thing he wanted to live, not because of the virus itself, but because of quarantine.

"Nobody visits me and I cannot go out even to walk and salute the passers-by ... I feel like I am living in a cave amid a deserted forest," he says with great sadness.

Chris does not hide the tears of being affected as he describes what he endured in the heavy days of Corona, and he says, "I wait impatiently for the team of volunteers to arrive to bring the medications I need and some foods, and that is only until I find the most recent, even for a few minutes ... even the neighbors have disappeared ... everyone closes his house. And they avoid avoiding approaching me, and I understand that, they do not want to transmit the infection to me, but I am a human being and I need to feel that I am surrounded by people. "

The conversation with Chris did not last long, despite the safety measures and the application of social divergence. The strict precautions taken by the volunteer team in order to avoid any direct contact with the elderly, impose not to stay long after placing food and medicine.

They need attention The
director of "Park Royale" Khaled Omar also has a pioneering experience in helping the elderly, and it attracted the attention of the British media, because of its importance.

Khaled tells Al Jazeera Net how some of the elderly cry when they reach them, because they only see people once a week and perhaps more.

He disclosed in his speech that in addition to the nutritional needs of many elderly people, what they need most is communication, adding, "For this we have put a hot line always open through which we receive communications, and there are those who call who do not want food or medicine, but only need someone to talk to and spend with him some Time on the phone. "

Through his experience with dozens of cases, Khalid reveals that "the pride is pushing some elderly people to not reveal their needs and are silent, so we communicate with community leaders because they know better than we need help."

Park Rowel club - like a number of charitable organizations - is trying to isolate the elderly, as the government, according to Khaled Omar, is busy with this category, and many of them are in the government medical record, yet it is not yet possible to provide medical assistance to 1.5 million people. "