Baruj Avram's Calls4Care Connects older adults with the young in a virtual way

Roughly half of adults consider themselves lonely, and social isolation increases the risk of death by 29%, according to this statistic. And with the social isolation brought on by responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are even more reasons for the creation of services that help connect people together. Barauj Avra, a 21 year old from Panama, recognized this bottle-neck created an app called Calls4Care with the singular goal of supporting older adults and their families throughout this distributed period. The COVID-19 pandemic has unfortunately only intensified circumstances leading to loneliness and isolation, and Calls4Care is able to offer solutions to help families during this difficult time.

Avram’s background is compelling. During the beginning of the pandemic, he found himself stranded in Miami, and quickly came to realize that the byproduct of this isolation was deteriorating his mental well-being. To take it further, Avram recognized that this isolation period may be tougher for those who are alone without any family. In Panama, he was surrounded by love and joy from his family, whom lifted his spirits when needed. In America, he didn’t have the same support system as home.

He explains that “I’m from Panama and Panama was completely locked down”, and “I was forced to quarantine by myself for eight months and after a few months went by, I spent my birthday alone and I just felt so lonely. I wanted to connect with people who were going through the same thing. Then I discovered elder orphans and knew I had to help”.

Social isolation is a new silent killer-- a major risk factor for a host of conditions including heart disease, high blood pressure, and early onset dementia. Most notably, social isolation costs the Medicare program $6.7 billion in additional spending every year, according to an AARP study. Noticing this gap, Avran created a non-profit organization with partners Steven Manocherian, Natalie Manocherian, and Daniel Manocherian to launch Calls4Care.

Calls4Care is “companion on demand” service, where they send a volunteer to an adult for companionship for orphan adults in need. The pandemic has fueled demand for companionship, even if it must be through a screen. Calls4Care has facilitated more than 2000 relationships. The match process is simple: volunteers are asked about their interests, skills, and life experiences and are then paired with elder fitting orphan matches. Afterwards, volunteers can connect with their matches. Then, volunteers are able to connect with their matches over the phone. Despite the inability to see folks in person, Avram created a clear category leader in helping bridge social isolation, and he is just scratching the surface of the opportunity that lies ahead.

To learn more about Calls4Care and to learn how you can become a volunteer, check out their website.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or the management of EconoTimes