There are many aspects to comprehensive care, and one of them stems from dependability. While our work ranges from handling medical emergencies to providing timely medical interventions, part of our responsibility is going beyond the call of duty to ensure our members’ well-being.
One day, ZC Mr B. K. Burman was on duty, hurrying to complete a task for a South Kolkata member. On his route, he passed the home of another member, Mr A. K. Bagchi, who lives with an attendant and suffers from forgetfulness. Mr Burman makes it a point to keep an eye on this house whenever he’s nearby. That day, he noticed something odd—a helmet in the veranda, even though Mr Bagchi had no scheduled visit and rarely receives visitors apart from Support Elders.
Though pressed for time, Mr Burman made a mental note to stop by after finishing his job. When he returned, the helmet was gone; the door was closed. He learned from the temporary attendant—standing in for the regular one—that someone from a water purifier company had taken Mr Bagchi to the bank to withdraw cash. This was a red flag: Mr Bagchi never goes to the bank without SEPL assistance.
Acting quickly, Mr Burman rushed to the bank he knew Mr. Bagchi used. There, he found the member waiting to withdraw money, accompanied by a stranger. When questioned, Mr Bagchi identified the man as the one who brought him. The man, sensing trouble, attempted to avoid interaction.
Mr Burman demanded identification, which the man failed to produce, offering only a photo on his phone. As Mr Burman attempted to contact the member’s daughter, the man stepped outside to make a call and tried to flee on his bike. Mr Burman blocked his path and called the Region Head who dispatched several staff members to assist.
Together, they took him to Mr. Bagchi’s neighbourhood, where locals gathered and called the police. The man finally confessed that he had coaxed Mr. Bagchi into withdrawing money—a scam that could have caused significant financial loss.
Thanks to Mr. Burman’s vigilance, presence of mind, and swift action, the member was protected from potential fraud.
Kudos to Team Support Elders!
Care Beyond Healthcare
Often, the work we do extends beyond emergency services and healthcare. Our focus is on holistic care, and the following story is a good example of that. Member Ms A. Ghose, a former government employee, used to request the SEPL staff to withdraw her pension from the bank each month. When she asked for a passbook update in March, she discovered that her pension had not been deposited for several months, despite submitting the mandatory Life Certificate. She realised she had unknowingly been withdrawing money from her savings.
Her ZC, Mr B. Maity, was informed of the situation, and he promptly sent Mr R. Ali over. Mr Ali visited the member, carefully understood the issue, and immediately contacted the West Bengal Government Pension Cell to gather details of the required paperwork. He collected all the necessary documents as advised and went to the Pension Office in Esplanade.
His persistence and determination to resolve the issue in a single day prompted the administration to take swift action. By around 9 PM that evening, the member received a message from the bank confirming that her pension had been deposited.
Ms Ghose was touched and wrote to us, saying, “I’m very thankful to Mr R. Ali and Support Elders.”
Kudos to Team Support Elders!
Going the Extra Mile
Our Well@Home member Ms K. Chaudhuri had not been keeping well for quite some time. Her son, who is currently in India, requested ZC Mr S. Dey to help his mother by arranging a doctor’s visit at home. Mr Dey scheduled an appointment with a local doctor and had the check-up done at her residence. The doctor prescribed a few medicines that needed to be started immediately.
As the member’s family is enlisted with the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), they were aware that the official process would take time. Her son asked Mr Dey if anything could be done to speed things up. Mr Dey, who knows the Head of CGHS—also a doctor with a chamber in a South Kolkata nursing home—explained the urgency and convinced the doctor to help. He then went to CGHS, collected the medicines, and delivered them to the member on the same day, ensuring there was no delay in starting the treatment.
Mr Chaudhuri son was extremely pleased with the dedication shown by Support Elders and personally thanked Mr Dey.
Kudos to Team Support Elders!
Teamwork That Made a Difference
Recently, our Alarm Centre received a post-midnight call from Zonal Coordinator Mr B. Basu, who had just been informed by the attendant of one of his under-care members that she had fallen. On duty at the time were Alarm Centre representatives Mr Sk. Fayzan and Mr A. Sadhukhan. One of them immediately declared Code Yellow and alerted night shift MCA Mr D. Mondal to rush to the member’s residence.
At the home of our member Ms S. Busch, Mr Mondal found her lying flat on the bedroom floor. He quickly assessed the situation, checked for visible bleeding, and asked if she was in pain. She explained that she had lost balance, fallen, and hurt her head. As she is mostly bed-bound with limited mobility, she was unable to get up on her own.
Realising he would need help, Mr Mondal called the Alarm Centre, which promptly contacted Mr B. Mukherjee to go over to Ms Busch’s residence to provide assistance.
Together, Mr Mondal and Mr Mukherjee brought a thick bed cover, gently moved the member onto it, and reassured her. They soon lifted her back onto the bed. While Mr Mukherjee left shortly after, Mr Mondal stayed for another 30 minutes to ensure she was comfortable and didn’t need further assistance. The response was completed, and Code Yellow closed, in under 40 minutes.