Last year, between 17th and 24th March 2020, when we were already strategizing and thinking hard about how we need to focus on the wellbeing of our elderlies and their families in the situation when cases were being identified, the lockdown was imposed and from 25th March, we were compelled to think beyond the day to day activities which we were already doing. We accordingly carved out a comprehensive, community-based emergency response plan with a focus to protect the vulnerable elderlies.

 

• We created first responders/peers (both staff and volunteers) of elderly through our community workers residing in the slums;

• We trained these peers on meeting the unique needs of vulnerable elders

• We created back-up service providers for tele-health (both counselling and consultations)

• And we also created a system for listing and providing basic supplies: raw ration, hygiene

• products for standard precaution, medicines, multi-vitamins, adult-diapers and other life

      sustaining items

• A special focus was on the elderlies with chronic illnesses

• And continuous messaging on Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) – specifically on self-care, wearing of masks, hand-washing and strictly following social distancing norms;

 

Thus, our understanding of the pandemic in the year 2020 made us focus more on