The perspective of the technicians at Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Campo Maior is crystal clear: they set up the My SAD project – my home support service – thinking about how they would like the service to be set up when their turn comes. “It’s thinking a bit about how we want to grow old (…) how we want [home support] to be for us in the future,” explains the project’s coordinator, Alexandra Mamede.

So, faced with the number of elderly people living alone, without going outside, the technicians go to their homes and show them various videos, keep them informed – about the municipal card for the elderly and its benefits, about high blood pressure, among many other topics -, do gymnastics, prevent age-related problems such as mobility, strength, the danger of falls, chat and laugh.

And in between visits, My SAD also has a network of volunteers who accompany the elderly from a distance. The “Cuidadora São” is a helpline through which volunteers feel the pulse of the elderly, talk about everything and nothing, are attentive to any warning signs, give various indications… permanent support, just a phone call away.