A Columbus call center checks-in on elderly during hot weather

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – We joke with the WCBI Weather Department about it every Summer, saying they could just record the weathercast and re-run it through September.

All kidding aside, too much exposure to the heat can lead to health risks.

For an elderly person living alone, the risk can increase if they’re not able to take care of themselves.

To make sure they’re ok, one call center in Columbus is reaching out to their elderly clientele, making sure they’re ok this season, one call at a time.

Their calls mainly focus on crisis intervention, but during the summer, Contact Helpline in Columbus adds another focus on their list, making sure their elderly clients are safe from hot weather.

“I had one lady tell me that she didn’t feel good and for me to call the ambulance,” said Caller, Peggy Adams.

When the phone doesn’t pick up, Contact Helpline doesn’t waste any time finding out if the person on the other end is ok.

“We’ll call their backup, which we have already pre-assigned each client. They decide who their backup will be,” said Contact Helpline Executive Director, Katrina Sunivelle. “If we cannot reach their backup, we call the local sheriff’s department in their area, and they’ll go out and do a wellness check and make sure our client is ok.”

Sunivelle said the calls do more than just check on their physical health.

It helps with mental health as well.

“Just being able to talk to them and know that somebody cares for them, you know, even if it’s only five minutes a day, you know, somebody cares for that one person,” said Adams.

Contact Helpline’s elderly clientele only accounts for around 400 elderly people in an 8-county area.

Because they’re not able to reach everyone, callers ask neighbors to look after one another in this hot weather.

“If a person is 70, 80, 90-years-old that lives by theirselves and they’ve got family close by, the family needs to go there and check on them,” Adams exclaimed.

“Listen for those signs,” Sunivelle said. “Make sure they’re drinking enough water or eating enough fruits and vegetables during this time because often we can’t tell when we’re dehydrated and having those feelings of dehydration, so checking on your neighbor and making sure they’re ok is a good thing to ensure that they’re receiving the assistance that they need.”

You can find information on Contact Helpline here.