Where love stays

QTO - The unfortunate lives, from the elderly, the disabled, the mentally ill, to orphans, abandoned children... are cared for and nurtured at the social work centers (CTXH) of Quang Tri province. Each person has a different fate, but when they come to this common home, they live in love, care and share joys and sorrows...

Individual lives under the same roof

Having been attached to the Nam Quang Tri Social Work Center for more than 6 years, Nguyen Thi Thao (75 years old), from Gio Linh commune, considers this as her second home and everyone living here as family. Telling the sad story of her life, Mrs. Thao pondered: “When I was young, I struggled to make a living, plus the responsibility of taking care of and supporting my parents, so I did not get married. Fate forced me to go to the temple to practice for 20 years but then had to return to my hometown because of poor health. Although my life was unlucky, since entering the center, I have been taken care of and do not have to worry about food and sleep every day. That is the greatest comfort for a lonely old person like me.”

Ms. Vo Thi Tam (67 years old), from Quang Tri ward, entered the center in August 2025 in a state of extremely severe disability, unable to take care of her personal activities and almost paralyzed. Thanks to the dedicated care and active rehabilitation treatment of the technicians at the center, Ms. Tam's condition has improved significantly. The recovery of motor function and the ability to take care of herself has given her confidence and joy in life.

The elderly at the Bac Quang Tri Social Work Center maintain their daily routine with gentle exercises, helping to improve their health and spirit - Photo: TT

In order to contribute to the effective implementation of socialization in the field of social security, from 2019 to now, the Bac Quang Tri Social Work Center has organized a model of care and nurturing services with voluntary contributions. Of the 86 people being cared for and nurtured at the center, 15 are volunteers. Not only is it a place to care for orphans, lonely elderly people and people with severe disabilities, the social work centers of Quang Tri province are also a trusted address to receive advice and support for those in need of emergency protection, including abandoned children, victims of domestic violence, victims of sexual abuse, trafficking, forced labor and other emergency protection subjects as prescribed by law.

The story of a little girl who was recently received and urgently protected by the Bac Quang Tri Social Work Center is a heartbreaking case. She was a victim of sexual abuse by a family member. As soon as the center received the information, it closely coordinated with local authorities and relevant agencies to carry out the reception procedures, provide initial health consultation and examination, and provide psychological therapy to protect and stabilize the victim's mental health and well-being. After a period of active consultation and support from experts, the girl gradually stabilized and returned to her family.

Dedicated and responsible to the disadvantaged

The Social Work Centers of North and South Quang Tri currently care for 141 people who are elderly, orphans, and people with severe disabilities (the Social Work Center of North Quang Tri has 86 people and the Social Work Center of South Quang Tri has 55 people).

Mr. Doan Xuan Thanh, Rehabilitation Technician, Nam Quang Tri Social Work Center, said that the cases of disability at the center are very diverse in cause, from long-term stroke sequelae to congenital disabilities from childhood, with difficulty in walking and moving. Therefore, rehabilitation work must always be carried out flexibly and individually, based on the individual medical condition of each subject to focus on improving the function of muscles, arms, and legs. For the elderly with many diseases and difficulty in movement after a stroke, there is support from a number of devices such as massage beds and exercise tools such as bicycles, treadmills, hand pulleys, outdoor exercise equipment systems... People with congenital disabilities will be supported by staff to practice light exercise, acupressure and support tools such as leg braces, infrared lamps, and walkers to improve motor function.

Technicians at the Nam Quang Tri Social Work Center enthusiastically support and help disadvantaged people gradually regain their motor functions - Photo: TT

In the story about the silent work of the staff, Director of the Nam Quang Tri Social Work Center Le Anh Minh shared a touching detail. Those were cases of lonely elderly people being cared for at the center who unfortunately passed away, but because they had no family or relatives to take them home, the staff themselves took care of all the funeral rites. They, together with the local government, organized a proper burial and regularly visited the graves, as if they were their own relatives.

A warm and humane atmosphere also spreads at the Bac Quang Tri Social Work Center. Director of the Bac Quang Tri Social Work Center, Tran Dinh Quy, said that the unit has done a good job of providing comprehensive health care, especially for newborns, young children and bedridden elderly people. Since the beginning of the year, the center has organized 152 regular and unscheduled health check-ups for the subjects, along with 13 treatments at the Vietnam-Cuba Dong Hoi Friendship Hospital. In addition, the center regularly organizes safe and healthy extracurricular activities, such as entertainment, sports, swimming classes for children and drowning prevention skills education ; promotes social mobilization to mobilize more resources to effectively implement programs to help children in especially difficult circumstances in the whole province with the amount of money mobilized since the beginning of the year to date of more than 4.9 billion VND.

“Social work centers in the province have made efforts to perform their professional tasks well, mobilize resources to improve the quality of health care, rehabilitation and care for the mental health of vulnerable groups, especially people with disabilities, contributing significantly to ensuring social security in the locality,” said Deputy Director of the Department of Health Ho Tan Canh.

Despite the difficulties in terms of facilities and human resources, the efforts, dedication and responsibility of the staff of the centers have contributed significantly to improving the quality of care and nurturing for the lonely elderly and orphans. The Social Work Center is truly a "common home" for the less fortunate to feel the warm sharing of love and responsibility from the social workers.

Thanh Truc

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/xa-hoi/202511/noi-tinh-thuong-o-lai-394395a/