Promote Healthy Aging in Finland

The nationwide forum on substance abuse in Turku celebrates Pilke's 15th anniversary. Pilke groups are small peer support groups to which people over 60 who are in danger of social exclusion or addiction are searched and invited to take part.

The groups are an example of close co-operation between the city and organizations such as the Fingerroos Foundation and the Finnish Blue Ribbon Association.

Pilke has been operating in Turku since 2015.

Pilke groups meet together with Turku in Helsinki and Rauma. Their goal is to bring happiness through joyful engagement and involvement in life. Weekly meetings include activities that have been jointly planned with the participants.

Groups are facilitated by trained professionals. The aim of the groups is to bring regularity to everyday life, to prevent marginalization and support in coping with everyday life, "says  Katariina Hänninen, the Blue Ribbon.

There are three Pilke groups in Turku, the first of which started in spring 2015. They operate in the areas of Keskus, Varissuo and Pansio-Jyrkkälä. The fourth group is about to start in the near future.

- Pilke groups are a fine example of the participatory activities of the city and organizations in the working and elderly areas,  says Leena Rinne , head of service  at City of Turku.

Turku's Pilke activities are co-operated by the City of Turku's well-being home care and wellness centers and the Löytävä project of the Fingerroos Foundation. The group's supervisors work together with the Home Care and Fingerroos Foundation employees.

In Turku, the first pilot pilots were trained in cooperation with the City and Sininauhaliitto in 2015.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The activity has started at the Deaconess Institute in Helsinki in 2002. Patients' peer-to-peer day operations groups have been born as part of the "Liika on-too-aging and alcohol" project (2005-2011). Since 2012, the in-substance work of older people in the Sininauhaliitto Association has continued with the support of STEA (formerly RAY) and Veikkaus to develop and disseminate Pilke's activities to new locations.

During this year we are collecting stories of people who have lost their loved ones due to substance abuse. The stories can be submitted through the attached link before 31.8.2017. http://www.sininauha.fi/keraamme-kokemustarinoita-paihdekuolemiin-liittyvasta-surusta-tulossa-kasikirja-ammattilaisille  We want to raise this difficult issue to public awareness in order to help those who suffer in silence.  According to last statistics during 2015, there were 1700 people who died due to alcohol abuse in Finland. Although, the number of alcohol deaths has reduced, the number of over 65's alcohol mortality is increasing. Finland and Nordic countries are sadly amongst the countries with highest mortalility rates for this group of people. Amongst the drug users the rate is much higher and people grieving for the deaths of their loved ones is yet many times higher.

Dr Mari Pulkkinen has noted grieving as a bigger tabu in Finland than the actual death. ' Many people are worried of being labeled as grieving, as it changes other people's ways of relating to them.'(HS 17.2.2017) If grieving itself is stigmatizing how hard is the stigma when the death is related to substance abuse. This project shows special empathy and sensitivity towards substance abuse related grieving and hopes to bring the topic to more open discussion. Your support to this work makes a real difference and we thank you for your continued commitment to supporting healthy ageing in Finland!

Links:

• http://www.sininauha.fi/keraamme-kokemustarinoita-paihdekuolemiin-liittyvasta-surusta-tulossa-kasikirja-ammattilaisille