An elderly woman whose fridge broke down dialled Supportline 179 thinking someone on the other end would help fix her appliance.

To those who are trying to get through, keep trying. Someone will pick up

Another caller dialled 179 and asked for another telephone number, thinking it was some form of directory service.

These genuine callers were among those who misunderstood the type of support offered by the service run by the Government’s support agency Appoġġ.

Between January and June more than 1,000 calls were made by people who dialled 179 as a wrong number.

“The Supportline was set up 16 years ago and is open to people of all ages to speak about and seek help for various social problems ranging from domestic violence to child abuse. Anyone who calls has the right to remain anonymous,” Svetlana Camilleri, supportline service area leader, said.

The service receives an average of 1,000 calls a month and the bulk are from people who are lonely or just need someone to listen to them.

In the first six months of the year, 464 of the 5,177 genuine callers turned out to be lonely. Some 483 callers had mental health problems, 449 called to ask for information on the services offered by the agency, 219 calls were related to domestic violence and 204 were reports on child abuse.

Callers often ring about abuse on third parties. In the case when a child is involved, immediate action is taken and volunteers immediately set the ball rolling to investigate.

“In these cases it is important people give us as many details as possible, such as address and names,” Ms Camilleri said.

But when the third person is an adult, action is only taken if the victim is the person making the call.

“So if a person calls about an adult whom they suspect is a victim of domestic violence, we guide the caller what to tell that person to help them seek help…

“If a victim calls, we do not tell her what to do but show empathy, listen, understand what the person wants and help her achieve that. We do not tell a person to leave home if they don’t want to,” she said.

Depending on the abuse or call for help, volunteers then refer the matter to team members within Appoġġ’s various branches to take the necessary action.

Claire is one of the 70 volunteers trained to deal with the range of calls that include suicide, homelessness and violence. When the case is serious, volunteers can call professional social workers or psychology officers on call for guidance.

“The cases that affect me most are when grandparents call because their children are exposing the grandchildren to inappropriate things like prostitution or they leave them at home alone,” said Claire, who preferred not to give her surname since volunteers remained anonymous to callers.

“You realise the need to reach out to these people. It’s the grandparents who are calling, not the parents… There is help out there but they are not seeking it, which is a pity.”

Several homeless people also called and volunteers helped by trying to make arrangements for shelter.

“There are more homeless than people think out there and the main reasons for them becoming homeless include mental health problems, fights with family members and addictions,” Claire said.

Then there are regular callers who need someone to speak to. “We try to empower them not to become dependent on the phone and guide them to other forms of support such as a social worker,” she said.

Volunteers who man the Supportline also have to face the prank callers who call and cut off repeatedly. In the first half of the year there were145 such calls.

“It’s important to use the Supportline responsibly as there are people who are trying to get through in a moment of crisis… To those who are trying to get through, keep trying. Someone will pick up and, if there’s a delay, it’s because the volunteers are helping others,” Ms Camilleri said.