Welcome back to the Telecare Choice news roundup. This month, a charity in West Yorkshire has been tackling loneliness among older men using a minivan and cup of tea. A photographer displays the unusual lives of the elderly and a bickering father and daughter become best friends in lockdown.
Charity Lockdown Trips for Lonely and Isolated Men
Aireborough Voluntary Services to the Elderly in West Yorkshire has been taking locals on Covid-secure minivan trips to encourage older men to talk to more people. The scheme was thought up after a number of elderly people the charity had tried to reach out to digitally had struggled with the technology needed. While the conversations start out with small talk, according to organisers, the gentlemen eventually begin talking about how they have been feeling during this tough time.
Loneliness is a serious problem among the elderly, contributing to both mental and physical health issues. Schemes like this one could be the beginning of a solution.
Hidden Depths of a Life Lived
Photographer Laura Page has captured the extraordinary lives of the elderly in her project: Hidden Depths. She shares stories of an 83-year-old Instagram model, a 90-year-old who danced in the London 2012 Olympics, and an 89-year-old who dedicated 25 years of her life fostering 256 young children. Each photo is colourful as the character they encapture in this collection.
Dad and Daughter Become Best Friends in Lockdown
Shireen, 15, had never been a daddy’s girl. In her video for BBC Young Reporter, Shireen tells how she never felt she had much in common with her Father and how massively they began to clash when she reached her teenage years. However, when lockdown struck and her Dad was unable to go to work as a doctor for the first time since she was born, a beautiful friendship blossomed. It began over food. First eating it together, then preparing it together. Now as (fingers crossed) lockdown slowly comes to an end, the two will go into a post lockdown world with not just a healthier father and daughter relationship, but a friendship too.
Feeling Isolated in Lockdown?
Lockdown has been a particularly lonely time for lots of us, especially older people who live by themselves. If you have been feeling isolated and you’re worried about your wellbeing (or somebody else’s) a Telecare alarm could be the solution.
To find out more about our life-saving service, read our helpful guide here or call our friendly team today. You can also order a Telecare alarm online or over the phone at any time.
