An aya service from Soendri Nurse & Aya Centre gives your family a trained caregiver for the day-to-day personal care that a patient or an elderly parent can no longer manage alone. Our ayas work in homes across Sonarpur and south Kolkata, in shifts from four hours to round the clock.
An aya is not a nurse. She does not give injections or change medication. What she does is the steady, practical care that makes the biggest difference to comfort and dignity, and that wears a family out when they try to do it all themselves.
What an aya does
- Bathing, sponge baths, oral care and changing clothes
- Toileting, bedpans and changing adult diapers
- Feeding, including patients who need to be fed slowly or propped up
- Turning bedridden patients regularly to help prevent bedsores
- Helping with walking, getting up, and moving to a chair or commode
- Reminding the patient to take medicines at the right times
- Keeping the patient's room, bedding and clothes clean
- Company and conversation, which matters more than most families expect
Who this is for
Families caring for an elderly parent at home, anyone recovering from surgery, a fall or a stroke, and households where the family works and cannot be home all day. If a patient needs care through the night as well, see our 24-hour aya service. If the patient is in hospital, see hospital aya service.
How to arrange an aya
- Call or WhatsApp +91 90513 20961. Tell us who the aya will care for, their age and condition, your area, and which hours you need covered. The phone is answered around the clock by the people who will actually arrange the caregiver.
- We suggest who to send. If what you describe needs a nurse rather than an aya, or an attendant rather than either, we will say so.
- Shift and rate are agreed first. Shifts of 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 24 hours are available, and you know the cost before anyone is sent.
- The caregiver comes to you, often the same day, and we check back to make sure the match is working.
Common questions
What is the difference between an aya and a nurse?
An aya gives personal care; a nurse gives medical care. Ayas help with bathing, feeding, toileting and moving, while a nurse can give injections, dress wounds and manage drips. If you are not sure which you need, describe the situation and we will tell you. For medical care see home nursing.
Are your ayas your own staff?
Yes. Our ayas are engaged and trained by the centre rather than passed on from other agencies, which is why families can ask for the same person again.
Can we change the aya if it is not working out?
Yes. Tell us what is not working and we will look for a better match.
Last reviewed 27 September 2026