Alzheimer patients celebrated the Republic Day.

The elderly benefiting from the Gülümse Alzheimer Living Center, opened by the Mersin Metropolitan Municipality for early-stage Alzheimer patients, celebrated the 101st anniversary of the Republic together with their families. Alzheimer patients painted the Turkish flags that were prepared.

The elderly and their families benefiting from the Gülümse Alzheimer Living Center, which operates under the Health Affairs Department, celebrated the 101st anniversary of the Republic at the beach. Enjoying the beautiful weather at the beach, Alzheimer patients had a meal together and then painted the drawings of the Turkish flags they had prepared. Gerontologist Cihan Tanrıverdi and Clinical Psychologist Yücel Şavklı, who work in the Health Affairs Department, also provided information to families about the course of the disease and what needs to be done.

“We will continue our activities”

Health Services Branch Manager Burcu Yalta Özgür stated that they celebrated the 101st anniversary of the Republic together with the patients and their relatives benefiting from the Gülümse Alzheimer Living Center, saying, “In this event, while our patients were engaged in activities appropriate to the meaning of the day, our psychologist and gerontologist working at our center also informed the relatives of the patients about the course of the disease and the difficulties they might encounter. Today, we created an environment where both our patients and their relatives could socialize together. We will continue our activities of this kind.”

“It is very important for relatives of patients to be included in the process”

Clinical Psychologist Yücel Şavklı, who works at the Gülümse Alzheimer Living Center, emphasized the importance of including and informing the relatives of patients in the process of Alzheimer’s disease, saying, “In the outdoor event we organized, we planned a beautiful program combining the celebrations of the 29th of October Republic Day. With our activities, we not only organized the attention and motor skills of our elderly but also conducted a special program with their relatives. Because caregivers may not be fully aware of the progression and course of the disease. They may not be able to anticipate the problems they could face and be prepared for them. We organized a program content regarding these issues.”