
Videophone Connects UK Family, Helps with Tremor
Grandma is approaching her 85th birthday in September.
Now lives alone
She has been living alone since her husband died 4 years ago after a long battle with cancer (20 years).
In his latter years, life consisted of many trips to hospital and she was busy caring for his health; not forgetting her own health issues; with the progression of an increasingly serious hand tremor, arthritis, and poor sight in one eye.
Health problems
A serious fall 2 years ago nearly killed her – so life has not been much fun and she knows she is vulnerable and less able to cope. She wants to stay in the family home of >50 years. The fact is, she is alone 95% of the time and resists asking people for help and so, in effect, isolates herself. She seldom goes out other than to a lunch club once a week and Sunday dinner, which set a repetitive weekly routine with few highlights to inspire her.
She does some reading, although mainly watches television and always has the radio on to keep her ‘company’.
Failing memory
Over the past 2 years her memory for technical things, such as controls on the television and use of iPad, have become very difficult for her and she is fearful of ‘messing up’ technical things by pressing the wrong buttons on remote controls. Now this is not the case with the videophone; although it took a little while for her to realise this, now she is like a duck to water.