Last October, the GNR carried out “Operation Census Senior 2023”, with the aim of combating loneliness and isolation among the elderly, and prevent dangerous situations, the respective balance was made last week, in which they were registered 44.114 elderly people living alone or isolated in the GNR action zone, that occupies 94% the national territory.
Rogério COPETO
Colonel of the GNR
Master in Law and Security and Homeland Security Auditor
The work that GNR develops during “Operation Senior Census”, born of the need to combat the isolation and loneliness of the elderly population, procedendo a GNR desde 2011 signaling the isolated elderly and alone, forwarding the situations of greatest danger, for institutions of support for the elderly, having signaled this year 15.596 seniors across the country the responsibility of GNR.
The GNR beyond signaling the elderly, conducts awareness-raising and information on the safety procedures to be followed in abuse situations, assault or fraud, and how they can report crimes they suffer, available for this purpose the phone numbers of the military GNR, thus creating trust between the GNR, the elderly and their families.
But, what was really at the root of Census Operation Senior was the fact that in February 2011 It has been found dead, one resident elderly in Rinchoa, Sintra municipality, in your own home, and alleged to be dead for 9 year old, no one had done anything, during all this time, whereby as a result of such occurrence, GNR took the stage the first edition of Operation Senior Census that year, so isolated or alone elderly were not found dead, without which no one paid them relief, because no human being should die without assistance, much less an elderly.
So, The main objective of Operation Senior Census is to register all elderly people who live alone and isolated, keeping with the same frequent contacts and reference together of the elderly support institutions, those who are in situations of greater vulnerability.
For this the GNR worth up its deployment throughout the country, from urban areas to the most remote areas of our country, human resources trained and motivated, GNR having registered an increasing number of elderly, from 2011, much the fault of the constant increase in the elderly population in our country, constituting one of the already aged in the world.
The all registered elderly is performed a risk assessment, and that in situations where the elderly reveals particular vulnerability, it is signaled to respective institutions, having already been hundreds of marked elderly and some were literally saved from an impending tragedy.
It is also a set of information gathered including age, sex, civil status, GPS coordinates of your residence, phone has, you have family, health status and level of autonomy, you receive support, which the regularity of such support and received support.
The information collected is confidential, It is used only for the purposes intended, which is to ensure better security for themselves or isolated elderly, so that they feel protected, thereby strengthening their own security, tornando-see a GNR, thereby, the institution with more information on the theme of isolation and loneliness of the elderly.
In possession of this information, GNR becomes the institution with more information on the theme of isolation and loneliness of the elderly, so it is often requested to give work account that performs with the elderly during Operation Senior Census, in various forums, where the theme is the elderly protection.
Despite the GNR develop this activity, in the context of this issue, this is constituted as first-line entity, linking up with the answer institutions, does not replace these, getting so a huge visibility and consequent recognition, from the entities who work with seniors, The further operation Senior Census been recognized as a National Good Practice in the study commissioned by the Economic and Social Council (THESE) entitled "The Population Aging: Dependence, Activation and Quality” and authored by the Center for the Study of Peoples and Cultures of Portuguese Expression, the Faculty of Humanities, the Portuguese Catholic University.
Operation Senior Census also aroused great interest, at government level, which includes the Ministry of Solidarity and Social Security (MSS) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAY), which led to both ministries signing a “Cooperation Protocol” in 1 February 2013, as reported by DN in the article titled “Signed protocol to combat loneliness", with the aim of ensuring “better coordination between the organizations that work in this area, in order to promote an increase in the quality of life and feeling of security of older citizens”.
In this “Cooperation Protocol”, MAI and MSS commit to strengthening local partnerships with social security services, and ensuring close coordination between security forces and the national social emergency line (line 144), as well as being responsible for “ensuring the sharing of information between the security forces and the social services of the Social Security Institute (ISS) and, not case of Lisbon, the Holy House of Mercy (SCML), in order to allow for an effective joint intervention to combat the isolation and loneliness of the elderly and the feeling of insecurity”.
In the DN article we learn that “the signing of the protocol is part of a set of initiatives that have been developed by the MSSS and MAI in order to combat the feeling of isolation and insecurity of older citizens”, where it is stated that “the GNR carries out the Senior Census Operation annually, having the first time in 2011, been identified 15.596 seniors, number that grew in the year 2012 to 23,001”.
Also the Ministry of Health (MS) showed interest in the work developed by GNR within the scope of the 1st edition of Operation Censos Sénior, and thus has the National Institute of Health - Dr. Ricardo Jorge filed with GNR, a partner in the study "Aging and Violence"And publicly presented at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation on 25 February 2014.
Every year, local and national media outlets also echo the work that the GNR carries out within the scope of Operation Censos Sénior, easily proving, through a Google search for the words “Senior Census”, which results in hundreds of pages with news, since the 1st edition held 12 year old.
It concludes like this, that the GNR plays a leading role in protecting the most vulnerable elderly, constituting Operation Census Senior as sufficient evidence that the GNR fulfills the mission that is required, going far beyond what is required, and that only the great humanity of all involved military makes this operation a success year after year, and is the confirmation that the GNR constitutes the face of the state, that closer and more visible is the older population, and who does what no one else does.
