Companion Policy & Agreement

1. Your Role as a Companion

A Veda Companion provides warm, respectful companionship and emotional presence. Your work is to make our members feel heard, valued, and never alone. Depending on the service, this includes:

• • Warm conversation, active listening, and genuine emotional support.
• • Sharing stories, mythology, reading aloud, and gentle engagement.
• • Helping members with simple technology (e.g. video calls, phone basics).
• • Companionship on walks or at home, where the service includes in-person visits.
• • Recording a short, kind session note so the family can stay connected.

2. What Companions Do NOT Do

Veda provides companionship and emotional support — not medical, nursing, or personal physical care. To protect you, our members, and their families, you must never:

• • Provide medical care, nursing, or administer/handle medication.
• • Provide physical personal care (bathing, dressing, toileting, lifting, feeding, or moving a person).
• • Give medical, legal, or financial advice.
• • Handle a member's money, cards, bank, or financial transactions on their behalf.
• • Perform household chores as a domestic worker (you are a companion, not a maid).
• • Take sole charge of any person who requires clinical or medical supervision.

If a member needs medical or personal-care help, kindly inform the Veda Companionship team so we can guide the family to a qualified professional. When in doubt, always ask the team.

3. Sessions, Timing & Availability

• • Punctuality: Arrive or join on time for every session. If you will be even a few minutes late, inform the team and the member in advance.
• • Your availability: Keep your online/offline status updated in your Companion portal. Only show as "online" when you are genuinely available to be assigned.
• • Session length: Honour the full scheduled duration of each session. Do not end early without good reason.
• • Cancellations: Avoid cancelling confirmed sessions. If an emergency arises, notify the Veda Companionship team as early as possible so we can support the member and, if needed, arrange an alternative.
• • Reliability: Consistency is the heart of trust. Members and families rely on you showing up, warmly and dependably, every time.
• • Reassignment & bonding: Where a member has bonded with you, we may prioritise assigning you to them again, subject to your availability.

4. Working Expectations & Standards

These practical standards keep your work with Veda Companionship smooth, professional, and warm for every member:

• • Responding to assignments: When the team offers you a session, please respond within a reasonable time (ideally a few hours) so members are not kept waiting. A prompt yes or no helps everyone.
• • Confirming ahead: Re-confirm your upcoming sessions the day before, and make sure you have the join link or visit address ready in your portal.
• • Preparation: For online sessions, test your internet, device, camera, and a quiet, well-lit space beforehand. For visits, plan your travel so you arrive a few minutes early.
• • Presentation: Dress neatly and modestly, and present yourself warmly and respectfully — you represent Veda Companionship and the trust families place in us.
• • During the session: Be fully present — no phone distractions, no multitasking. Give the member your warm, undivided attention for the full session.
• • Session notes: After each session, add a short, kind note in your portal so the family feels connected and reassured.
• • Leave & notice: If you need time off or will be unavailable for a period, inform the Veda Companionship team in advance so we can plan member coverage. For planned leave, please give as much notice as you reasonably can.
• • Communication: All coordination happens through Veda Companionship (the team and your portal). Keep your contact details and availability current.
• • Continuous warmth: Every member is someone's parent, child, or loved one. Treat each session with the same care you would want for your own family.

5. Conduct & Respect

• • Treat every member with kindness, patience, dignity, and cultural respect.
• • Maintain a warm but professional relationship at all times. Romantic, sexual, or otherwise inappropriate conduct is strictly prohibited and will result in immediate removal.
• • Never discriminate on the basis of religion, caste, gender, ability, or background.
• • Dress and speak appropriately and respectfully for every session.
• • Do not promote personal beliefs, sell products, or solicit money, gifts, or favours from members or their families.
• • Do not take members or families off the Veda Companionship platform for private arrangements. All sessions must be booked and conducted through Veda.

6. Safety & Verification

Your safety matters as much as the member's. These guidelines protect both of you.

Your personal safety (home visits)

• • Share your location: Before every home visit, confirm the address through the platform and share your location with a trusted contact of your own.
• • First visit vigilance: For a first visit to a new member, be aware of your surroundings. If anything feels wrong, you have the right to leave calmly and without explanation — notify the Veda Companionship team immediately.
• • Never meet outside the platform: All visits must be booked through Veda Companionship. Do not visit a member at an address not confirmed in your portal.
• • Keep boundaries firm: If anyone makes you feel uncomfortable, step away safely and contact us. You are never required to continue a session that feels unsafe.
• • Children — guardian always present: For sessions with children, a parent or guardian must be present in the home at all times. No exceptions.

If a member is unwell, distressed, or at risk

• • Medical emergency: Call emergency services (112) immediately. Then notify the Veda Companionship team — we will contact the family emergency contact without delay.
• • Signs of distress: If a member seems suddenly confused, in pain, or in emotional crisis — end the session gently, call emergency services if needed, and do not leave them alone.
• • Mental health concern: If a member expresses thoughts of self-harm, stay calm, listen warmly, and contact the Veda Companionship team immediately. Do not make promises you cannot keep.
• • Online sessions: If a member appears unwell or unresponsive on a call, try the family emergency contact directly and notify our team immediately.

Incident reporting

• • Any incident — however minor — must be reported to the Veda Companionship team within 24 hours via your portal note or direct contact.
• • Incidents include: a member falling or being injured, unexpected persons present, any conduct that made you uncomfortable, or anything out of the ordinary.
• • Reports are confidential and treated with care. You will not be penalised for honest reporting.
• • Sessions must never be recorded by you in any form. Any recording is grounds for immediate termination.

Verification & identity

• • Complete ID verification (Aadhaar / Government ID + live photo) before your first session. This is mandatory.
• • For in-person visits, confirm the visit address through the platform before leaving. Never visit an unconfirmed address.
• • Keep your profile details (photo, ID, contact) current. An outdated profile may pause your session access until updated.

7. Confidentiality & Privacy

• • Everything a member shares is strictly confidential. Never disclose, discuss, or share a member's information, situation, or identity with anyone outside the Veda Companionship team.
• • Do not share a member's contact details, photos, address, or personal information with any third party.
• • Session notes are for the family's warm update and Veda's records only — keep them kind, respectful, and appropriate.
• • Your confidentiality obligations continue even after you stop working with Veda.

8. Payments & Engagement

• • You are engaged as an independent companion, not an employee, unless agreed otherwise in writing.
• • Compensation, rates, and payout schedule are as communicated to you by the Veda Companionship team.
• • All payments for sessions are collected by Veda Companionship. Never accept direct cash, gifts, tips, or payments from members or families.
• • Do not negotiate fees or private arrangements with members.

9. Family Connection

After each session, you may add a short, warm note about how the session went (for example, "We had a lovely chat about gardening and shared a few laughs"). This helps families — especially those living far away — feel close to their loved ones. Keep notes positive, honest, respectful, and free of any sensitive medical or private detail.

10. Suspension & Termination

Veda Companionship may suspend or end a companion's engagement at any time, including immediately, for:

• • Any breach of this Agreement, especially safety, conduct, or confidentiality.
• • Recording sessions, inappropriate behaviour, or taking members off-platform.
• • Repeated lateness, no-shows, or unreliability.
• • Any conduct that harms a member, their family, or Veda's reputation and trust.

You may also choose to stop working with Veda at any time; we simply ask for reasonable notice so members are not left without support.