After a bad bout of pneumonia, 80-year-old Dot was rushed to hospital. When she got home she did not have anyone to turn to, that was until The Benevolent Society turned up at her front door in a most unusual way.

Dot is an 80 years old client of The Benevolent Society. She was born in England and immigrated with her husband to Australia in the late 60's. Unfortunately, she was tragically widowed at a young age and was left alone to raise her three children. Dot just had to get on with it, working long hours as a children’s nurse to pay for her family needs. Later Dot got a job at the Department of Community Services in Sydney.

Dot has always been very independent. However this winter after a bad bout of pneumonia and blood clots, she was rushed to hospital and then when she got better she was sent home for six weeks bed rest. The only problem was that Dot did not have anyone to look after her or to turn to for help.

At about the same time The Benevolent Society launched a new marketing campaign aimed at senior citizens. Luckily a flyer was dropped into Dot's letterbox. Dot stated that the brochure stood out like a gift from God, “What a fantastic piece of advertising, it was very compelling” said Dot. Dot immediately contacted The Benevolent Society, her status with ‘My Aged Care’ was checked and The Benevolent Society was able to offer Dot a low-level Home Care Package. Dot was delighted.

Soon after, Dot's case manager travelled to meet her in her home in a country town. The Care Plan for Dot included: domestic assistance twice a week, outings to the shops once a month, and gardening help every six weeks to weed, prune and pot up cuttings. A house alarm system was organised. As Dot is legally blind in one eye and also has glaucoma, she was given an alert pendant in case of a fall.

A follow-up home visit from Vision Australia mobility specialist was booked in. Dot hinted that she would like a white-tipped cane for outings. It is still very early days working with Dot and once she is awarded a higher home care package, The Benevolent Society will be able to do much more for her but feedback from our lovely new client has been very positive so far.

*Names and images have been changed to protect members of the family