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Outlook: Undercover in a nursing home at the age of 83

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Sergio sits in a dark room and writes his nightly report in his notebook

24/08/2021 GMT

Undercover in a nursing home at the age of 83

BBC World Service - Outlook, Undercover in a nursing home at the age of 83

Sergio Chamy was in for a shock when he answered a job advert for men in their 70s to 90s

Chilean Sergio Chamy answered an intriguing job advert which led him to go undercover in a home for the elderly. His findings surprised everyone.

After his wife died, 83-year-old Sergio Chamy was feeling lost and alone, so when he spotted a job advert in a newspaper looking for gentlemen in their 70s to 90s, he answered it. He was more than a little surprised when he found out what the job actually involved: going undercover at a nursing home for the elderly in his native Chile. What he discovered there has inspired a national conversation in Chile about the loneliness and sadness often experienced by the elderly. Sergio's time undercover at the home in 2017 was filmed and released as a documentary called The Mole Agent which was nominated for an Oscar this year - Sergio and his daughter Dalal attended the ceremony in Los Angeles. Outlook's Jane Chambers has been speaking to both of them.

Brad Gudger was first diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia in 2013 when he was just 19. Although he responded well to treatment, he had a relapse a few years later and it was while he was isolating in a hospital ward awaiting a bone marrow transplant in 2018 that he came up with an inspiring idea - an app to bring young people together who have been diagnosed with cancer and are feeling alone. With the help of an app developer, Brad has founded a charity called Alike and it's already helping thousands of young cancer patients in the UK. Brad is hoping it will soon be available more widely. He's received the Diana Award for young people who are creating positive social change, and presented his app to Her Majesty the Queen.

Film clips from The Mole Agent came courtesy of Micromundo Productions.

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com

Picture: Sergio Chamy, undercover agent, writes his nightly report
Credit: Micromundo

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