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Community-Based Mobility Support

Community-Based Mobility Support

Summary

Five community groups provide older residents with mobility support for grocery shopping and hospital visits in areas where public transport is limited. The frequency and content of transport services are determined by each voluntary group based on the local mobility needs. Hadano City provides training for volunteer drivers, and social welfare corporations lend out vehicles, which enables sustainable and voluntary operations by the community groups.

How the initiative works (case of the Bodai shopping support team):
1 Service users contact volunteer drivers by the day before they wish to shop.
2 Volunteer drivers borrow vehicles from a social welfare corporation.
3 Volunteer drivers pick up users from their homes.
4 Volunteer drivers transport users to large supermarkets, where users do the shopping.
5 Volunteer drivers drop off users at their homes.
Frequency: Every Thursday

Driving volunteers have expressed that cooperation of the city and social welfare corporations enables them to continue volunteering without feeling a heavy burden. Looking ahead, it is essential to foster new volunteers and provide support for safe driving. Hadano City confirms the activity status of each volunteer group through regular meetings and has implemented health checks for volunteer drivers.

Brief summary: https://extranet.who.int/agefriendlyworld/?sfid=10015

Website: https:///www.city.hadano.kanagawa.jp/soshiki/5/1036/4/2471.html

Key facts

Main target group: Vulnerable older people (e.g. at risk or victims of abuse, living alone, poor etc.)

Sector(s): Transportation

Desired outcome for older people:
Be mobile

Other issues the Age-friendly practice aims to address:
  • Ageing in place
  • Participation

Contact details

Name: Hikari Kanai

Email address: kourei@city.hadano.kanagawa.jp

Age-friendly practice in detail (click to expand):

Engaging the wider community

Project lead: Volunteers

Others involved in the project:
  • Local authorities
  • Social or health care provider

How collaboration worked: City’s general funds, subsidies from the Hadano City Council of Social Welfare, allocations from the Red Feather Community Chest, and expenses covered by social welfare corporations, and others. *Funding sources vary by group.

Older people’s involvement: Older people were involved in the age-friendly practice at multiple or all stages

Moving forward

Has the impact of this age-friendly practice been analysed: Yes

Was the impact positive or negative:
Positive

Feedback:
Users have commented that using the mobility support service has given them the joy of shopping in person and the pleasure of meeting and interacting with others.

Expansion plans:
If there are potential users or service providers, Hadano city will work with local residents and social welfare professionals to explore approaches tailored to the community.

Looking back

Reflections:
This initiative not only benefits the service users but also helps the volunteers themselves prevent the need for long-term care.

Challenges:
The challenge is to remove the safety concerns for volunteers. The city is developing an operational manual agreed upon by all relevant parties, including the city, the social welfare organizations providing vehicles, and the volunteers.