An eldertech start-up is looking to keep seniors healthy & happy

In a country where the elderly are seldom at the centre of discourse, let alone government policies, the pandemic has come as a wakeup call. The year gone by has triggered serious concern for the ageing population, a segment of society that has forever struggled with a pervasive and never-ending epidemic: Loneliness.

When the pandemic struck and country after country went into lockdown, many of the elderly found themselves stuck alone in their homes — away from their children, who were stranded in other cities or countries, and without any support system. During that period, civil society members, NGOS and in some cases, local administration, helped deliver essentials to them.

A conversation has since started around their vulnerability and the need to address their needs. Among other things, a clutch of eldertech companies has come to the fore and is helping provide essential services — emergency medical assistance, nursing care, bill payments, help with errands, tech support at home and so on (see box). One among them is taking care-giving a step further: Adding emotional care to the package that includes providing what should be treated as basic — a healthy and comfortable life.

Emoha Eldercare, a techbacked service provider that was founded in January 2019, is looking to have the elders constructively engaged, energised and active. Hence the name, Emoha, which stands for “emotional happiness” and is also an anagram of “a home”.

Emoha’s journey started when its co-founder and CEO, Saumyajit Roy, was about 10 years old. “My grandfather fell in a market in Kolkata. For a day, we didn’t know where he was,” he says. Memory of that incident and the realisation that advancing age brings with it all kinds of vulnerabilities stayed with him. Later, he saw his mother, who had led an active life throughout, deal with memory issues as she aged.

“As people age, they experience different levels of loss: loss of physical and mental ability; loss of relevance,” he says. “And there comes a time when they start to give up on quality of life, and the days become about surviving, about health problems, about coping with isolation and loneliness.”

He decided to create something that would take care of emergency planning for the elderly so that they could focus on rediscovering and engaging with life in a productive manner. Emoha was an outcome of that.

Roy, who cofounded the startup with Rohit Bhayana, a London School of Economics graduate with experience in governance management, has some understanding of elder care: He was the co-chair of the CII Task Force on Senior Care and was the founding board member of the Association of Senior Living India.

During the pandemic, Emoha, which is funded by Lumis Partners, a US and India-based investment fund, also became Covid partners for various housing colonies in Gurugram. It has a small army of nurses, paramedics and doctors who reach the emergency spot in 15 to 40 minutes in Delhi and Gurugram. It also has a network of ambulances mapped out in a 35 km radius. During the lockdown, its quick response helped saved over 50 lives.

The organisation has presence across several Indian states and cities — Pune, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Coimbatore, to name a few — and is expanding. But it hasn’t opened up for funding.

Its focus on physical, mental and emotional health comes through in some accounts:

Shivcharan Bohra, 69, who n retired as senior manager in Bank of India, was stuck in his house in Delhi all alone when the lockdown happened. His wife had died two years ago, his sons and daughter lived elsewhere, and before “I realised it, I was in depression”, he says. “I think I was a bit overconfident that I would be able to manage alone.” Desperate to get help, his son, who lives in the UK, stumbled upon Emoha. “They (the team at the start-up) drew me out of my loneliness. Initially, I would not open up, but they stayed at it, reaching out to me, calling every day, genuinely caring.”

Aqbal Siddiqui, who retired from the telecommunications department, where he served at BSNL, MTNL and VSNL, was also stranded alone in Delhi with his wife and daughter in Dubai and son in Canada. Since he found out about the organisation and joined it, he says his days have been packed: “There are so many sessions through the day: doctors who tell you everything you need to know about your wellbeing; Bollywood club, learners’ club…”

Tanvi Gautam, 70, says nothing n could rattle her. She was active, full of life, living alone at Indirapuram, Ghaziabad, and not unhappy about it. “And then one day, I woke up with a strange anxiety that wouldn’t go away,” she says. Scrolling through Facebook, she came across the start-up and decided to try it out. “My days haven’t been busier,” she laughs. “I suddenly have new friends in life.”

The United Nations Population Fund, in its India Ageing Report, estimates that the country’s elderly population would grow to 158 million by 2025 and by the end of the century, seniors will make for 34 per cent of India’s population.

The Longitudinal Ageing Study of India, released in January this year, found that one in five elderly persons in India has mental health issues; around 75 per cent of them suffer from a chronic disease; and 40 per cent have some or the other disability.

It’s a population that needs better care. And “care,” as Roy says, “is not just about health care.”