How to check on elderly parents in Pakistan when you live abroad

For Pakistani families in the UK, the Gulf and North America: a daily WhatsApp check-in in Urdu, Rescue 1122 and Edhi 115, and a local circle.

By the Athnova Care team · Updated 2026-10-02

Why families abroad worry about parents in Pakistan

Many Pakistani families have children in Birmingham, Dubai, Riyadh, Houston or Toronto and parents in Lahore, Karachi, Faisalabad or a village in Punjab or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Phone calls are frequent, but they happen when the children are free — not when a parent needs help.

A daily check-in in Urdu, on WhatsApp, gives the family a signal every morning and a plan for the morning it does not come.

A daily check-in in Urdu, on WhatsApp

Every morning, at the time you choose on their clock, your parent gets one WhatsApp message in Urdu: did they take their morning medicines? They tap a button — "yes", "not yet" or "please call me" — and you see the answer in the family app.

Nothing to install and no password: the message arrives on the WhatsApp they already use, from a contact called Athnova Care. They can also send a photo of a blood-pressure reading, a prescription or a report at any time.

If the morning message is not answered, a reminder follows about three hours later. Our follow-up phone call does not reach Pakistan yet, so if the reminder also goes unanswered you are alerted straight away, and then the neighbour or relative you chose is asked to check.

Emergency numbers in Pakistan

Save these in your own phone and in your parent's, and on the fridge. Messages from Athnova Care quote this number when your parent says they are unwell, and so does their emergency card.

Number	What it is for
1122	Rescue 1122 — ambulance and rescue in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and many other cities
115	Edhi Foundation ambulance

We are not an emergency service. In an emergency, your parent or the person with them should call the local number first.

Build a local circle before you need it

Ask two people near the house to be your local circle: a brother or cousin, a neighbour, someone from the mohalla or the mosque. Save their numbers in the app so they are asked to look in if your parent stops answering.

Make sure one of them has a key and knows which hospital your parent prefers, and that the address on the emergency card includes the block, street and a landmark.

Doctors, hospitals and medicines

In many provinces the Sehat Card (Sehat Sahulat programme) covers hospital treatment for registered families. Check whether your parent is eligible and keep the card with their papers.

Write the family doctor’s number and the preferred hospital on the emergency card, so a neighbour or the Rescue 1122 team knows where to take them.

The time difference

Pakistan is on UTC+5 all year. It is one hour ahead of the UAE, four or five hours ahead of the UK, and 9 to 13 hours ahead of the US and Canada.

What Athnova Care does and does not do in Pakistan

Daily WhatsApp check-in in Urdu or English, with the reply in your app.
An alert to you when they go quiet (the follow-up phone call does not reach Pakistan yet).
Alerts to the whole family, then to the neighbour or relative you chose.
An emergency card with their address, medicines, allergies, doctor and contacts, ready to share with a hospital.
Medicine reminders, readings and reports kept in one place for the doctor.
Not offered there: lab tests and medicine refills, which we arrange in India only.

Questions families ask

Are the messages in Urdu script?

Yes. WhatsApp messages are in Urdu script; replies in Urdu or in Roman Urdu ("le li", "abhi nahi") are understood.

What are the emergency numbers in Pakistan?

Rescue 1122 for ambulance and rescue in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and many other cities, and 115 for an Edhi ambulance.

Is there a phone call if they do not reply?

The follow-up call does not reach Pakistan yet, so if the message and the reminder go unanswered we alert you and your local circle straight away.

Athnova Care tracks and coordinates care. It does not diagnose, prescribe or replace a doctor. In a medical emergency in Pakistan call 1122.