With seniors being at high risk from the coronavirus, assisted living communities have restricted nonessential visits to keep their residents safe. Although this means you cannot visit your senior loved ones personally, it does not mean that you have to be completely out of touch with them. Luckily today it’s easier than ever to stay connected with loved ones virtually no matter what the circumstances.
Here are three easy ways to stay in touch with seniors when visits are restricted.
1. Make Video Calls
There’s a certain joy in being able to talk to a loved one over a video chat. You may not be able to hug or touch each other but both of you can see each other, which creates a wonderful sense of closeness. Making video calls to anyone anywhere in the world is not just easy, it’s free too.
There are several options available for making free video calls. The best one for you will depend on who all are joining in on the call and whether they are all joining in from the same location or different locations. It also depends on whether your loved one in the facility has a computer or a phone.
These are some of the best free video calling options to looking into:
• Skype
• WhatsApp
• FaceTime
• Zoom
• Google Hangouts
• Facebook Messenger
If video calls are not an option for you for any reason, you can still keep in touch over the phone. Call regularly, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Just hearing your voice over the phone can do much to lift your loved one’s spirits.
2. Drop Off Care Packages
Assisted living facilities may not allow visitors to enter but they will allow care packages to the dropped off at the premises. There’s no limit as to what you can include in a care package. It can consist of any assortment of items that you know your loved one would enjoy. These could be anything from their favorite chocolates and comfort snacks to their favorite toiletry items. You can also add in a few coloring books and pencils, books, puzzles or any other indoor activity that you know that they’d love to spend time doing. Including a few family photographs and handwritten notes from family members will make the care package even more special.
A care package does not have to be very expensive. Seniors would prefer to receive small, personal gift packages more often rather a huge, expensive gift once a year. With the coronavirus pandemic still raging across the country, it’s worth taking some extra precautions such as sanitizing every item before packaging it.
3. Encourage Family Members To Send Letters And Cards
This is very easy, there’s absolutely no reason not to. Even if any family member cannot send a care package, they can still send greeting cards on special occasions and hand-written letters at any time of the year. Make it extra special by enclosing a few photographs of family members. These will serve as reminders that their loved ones are thinking of them and missing them. Looking through the letters and photographs in the days to come will serve as a constant reminder that their loved ones are thinking of them and will help dispel those feelings of loneliness and isolation.
