KOCHI: Despite the fast-emerging ‘ageing’ crisis, Keralam is still in the early stages of setting up its ‘purple economy’.
For many patients, the hardest part of being admitted to a hospital is finding someone to be by their side during the length of the treatment. Most of those seeking help are senior citizens living alone and destitute patients who have nobody to accompany them.
According to a recent Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report, Keralam has the highest share of elderly residents in the country. By 2036, nearly one in four people in the state — 22.8% — is projected to be over 60 years of age, compared with the national average of 14.9%.
“While some hospitals have started dedicated wings that provide bystander assistance, some arrange caregivers through agencies,” said a home-care staff member at Aster Medcity, Kochi. “There has been a rise in people seeking these services in recent years. When a patient needs a bystander, we arrange outsourced patient-care assistants. The service costs around `1,290 for 12 hours if provided inside the hospital and `1,550 outside, within a 25km radius,” the staffer added.
VCare Home Nursing in Kochi said people are being trained specifically for the purpose. “Hospitals run courses that extend from one month to 45 days. People generally prefer hospital-arranged caregivers and turn to private agencies if these services are unaffordable. This is now common in cities such as Mumbai and Delhi. As demand grows, hospitals in the state have also initiated bystander assistance,” a representative of VCare Home Nursing said.
V K Rajasekharan, who lives with disability, acknowledges that a bystander has become a necessity in his life as his wife is the only person available to take care of both him and their son with special needs.
They live in a rehabilitation centre in Ottapalam but frequently travel to Thiruvananthapuram for medical check-ups. “My wife cannot accompany me. So, for the doctor appointments and the return journey, I need help from someone who can accompany me through the process,” said Rajasekharan.
As demand grows, more and more people are coming forward as volunteers or to offer paid service. Baby Manjaly Ouseph, a visa consultant from Thrissur, charges `1,500 for 12 hours. He started working as a bystander in Thrissur and Ernakulam after noticing elderly patients arriving alone and struggling through hospital formalities while he was admitted following an accident.
“I am currently helping a cancer patient whose husband is abroad and whose children are outside the state. When I posted a video about the service on social media, I received around 2,000 enquiries, including from people willing to work as bystanders. I started a WhatsApp group — Kerala Bystander Data — that connects patients in need of bystanders to people willing to provide the service. Started only 12 days ago, 15 patients across Kerala have so far been connected to bystanders,” he said.
The absence of a proper registry or reliable system for getting bystanders has also become a problem. Another concern is the burden placed on caregivers. Ensuring that enough trained people are available is therefore as important as creating a database.
The state has already acknowledged that ageing will require a larger care infrastructure. The most recent budget allocated Rs 10 crore for the newly-constituted department of elderly welfare. A six-month government-approved caregiver certificate course was also proposed through government and private nursing colleges and selected hospitals. But while policies take shape, the need is often immediate: someone to accompany a patient to a consultation, help navigate a hospital corridor or simply sit beside their bed.