More home visits to help combat loneliness among elderly Berliners

More home visits to combat loneliness among the elderly: Malteser's successful pilot project is being expanded to five more districts.

"By 2024, the home visits will be offered throughout Berlin," Charlotte Rybak, spokeswoman for Malteser Berlin, told the German Press Agency (dpa) on Monday. During the house visits, experts inform Berliners aged 70 and up about topics around health and care as well as about leisure offers in their neighborhood.

Free service expanded to include five more districts

The aim of the project is to show Berlin's senior citizens how they can find suitable leisure activities in their neighborhood and establish contact with others. So far, Malteser has already visited 350 people in Charlottenburg and Hohenschönhausen. Now, senior citizens in Lankwitz, Mariendorf, Marzahn-Hellersdorf, Reinickendorf and the Allendeviertel can also benefit from the free service.

Older people particularly affected by loneliness

Elderly people are considered to be particularly at risk of slipping into loneliness. The visit project is intended to prevent this. To this end, the district offices contact the senior citizens directly by letter. The project is a cooperation between Malteser and the Senate Department for Higher Education and Research, Health, Long-Term Care and Gender Equality.