elderly care

[VJ]

Hello,

Perhaps a strange question...

Any suggestions on ways to make life more comfortable/entertaining for a bedridden 80 year old elderly person with limited fine motor skills but sharp mind?

An aunt recently suffered a fall at home and may not be able to live alone any more: 20 years of Parkinson is taking its toll, and operating a remote may become challenging... I'm looking at alternative ways to operate a TV-decoder box (problem: none of the common assistants are available the local language), ways to make reading possible (e-book positioned on a stand, ...) , ....

Thanks,

Jörg

[Umfriend]

Would a remote control with big buttons still be feasible? E.g. https://www.bol.com/nl/nl/p/senioren...caAsRvEALw_wcB

And it is not a strange question. If not ourselves yet, than all our parents are getting geriatric.

[UtwigMU]

Once we will be in nursing homes we will do retro gaming.

There are many ways to automate stuff. If voice assistant cannot be used, large buttons could be the answer.

[VJ]

Once we will be in nursing homes we will do retro gaming.

Why wait? (just started Broken Sword a few days ago)
But for sure, such adventure games should be relatively easy to control.

There are many ways to automate stuff. If voice assistant cannot be used, large buttons could be the answer.

I'm honestly surprised that voice assistants are not in Polish: Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant and Bixby all are not in Polish. It does seem that the new LG ThinkAI (or however you write it) on the new TVs support Polish language, but the platform is more limited than the others.

I'm not sure a remote is possible: she does not bend her fingers but uses her hands a bit like pincers (thumb + stretched other fingers). We got a programmable remote to replace the default one, as the tactile feedback is different (and the default remote has a repeat-function, but she cannot press the button short enough for it not to activate). But that was a solution a few months ago, having seen her hand and finger movements now, I'm not too sure it still suffices.
I found some table-top programmable remotes with 5 big buttons, but they are crazily expensive and rather limited. As off-the-shelf solutions, I thought this could work:

https://www.8bitdo.com/arcade-stick/

It connects via bluetooth (e.g. to a TV), and you can assign buttons (profiles stored in the device, has to be done via a computer). And as smart TVs can be controlled with keyboards, it is a matter of assigning the necessary keys... It would lack a power on button though, and would look quite big.

A bit more work, but not impossible would be to make something this:

https://blog.arduino.cc/2021/09/28/sababox-is-an-easy-to-use-remote-for-the-elderly/

I thought of it before seeing it as I basically have everything needed (except for maybe good buttons - easily bought), but not much time to do it. It could be battery powered and basically any IR signal can be sent (thus also to a decoder box).
The issue is less urgent as the aunt now goes for revalidation in the hope to get her to walk, so I will try to give the work on this box priority.

For lights, something like this could be very easy:

https://www.allocacoc.com/Home/Home/Product/detail/product_id/95

(no battery in the remote, I read comments that the button is a bit hard to press - but that may actually be a benefit)
Alternatively, one could wire a relay in the Arduino control box above, but I would prefer to keep that box away from power cables (no dangers with spills or anything). But there are other wireless possibilities based that could be combined with the Arduino (second Arduino with ir receiver and relay switches for example). So I think I will get working on this arduino-type thing, even if just to get the wiring/programming. A panel with buttons is quickly bought/made/printed, and then it is even possible to get different colours, shapes or whatnot. It would be bigger than a remote, but the idea would be to mount it somewhere so the buttons can be easily reached without having to hold it.

For now she will get transferred from the hospital to a revalidation centre. Theoretically she can stay there forever, but our current hope is that it is a temporarily stage to improve her general mobility so we can then transfer her to a more comfortable place (e.g. with a private room), or even to my inlaws. But she has to be able to reliably do a couple of steps before that will be possible.

It is a bit of a weird situation: most of the times the mind is one of the things that go... but it is so sad to see the body failing a person with a clear mind. I have no idea if there is a way to get her to do crossword puzzles or other mind-activating games... She used to do them but now really has a problem. Fine motor skills are really an issue, combined with the fact that she has no computer experience at all. So it is not the "simple" matter of connecting an accessibility controller to a computer and just make it work that way.

(it did make me wonder about my parents: they have a similar age, but if things get more difficult for them.... I'm 1400km away.... And it also makes me wonder about us: with no children or other close family, we have to rely on own at that age)

[UtwigMU]

could you 3D print something with large buttons?
Or 3D print something she could use as a glove to enable her to press a button?

Take remote and 3D print larger version?

There are oversized unviversal remotes

[VJ]

This thing on the Arduino blog is a 3D printed box with buttons and IR control. I like the idea but would prefer some more nicer looking and more solid buttons - but I will start with the small buttons that came with my Arduino for testing. There still is a bit of time and solid buttons with momentary switches are quickly bought.

The problem with oversized remotes is that you still have to hold them. The combination of holding a remote and pressing a button seems difficult. Before now, she rested the remote on her fingers and managed to reach the necessary buttons with thumb or with her other hand. An oversized remote would not rest comfortably (she has small hands), some buttons may be too far and the movement of her other hand got more difficult.

The glove idea is interesting, but there are special sticks that are easier to hold or have loops. I would not go with something 3D printed for something like that as the material may not be that nice on the skin.

[VJ]

Ok, it suddenly got much more problematic...
On Friday the aunt will be discharged from the hospital, but the revalidation centre does not have space yet (they expect to have space next week). Which means my inlaws will take her in for the time being, which is at least 4-5 days, not sure how much more. Inlaw-jokes aside, they are very nice and helpful, but not always listening to other peoples needs/desires. So my wife and I will try to provide some balance...

All in all a very difficult situation: the aunt is devastated that she cannot go back to her flat now, my mother-in-law because she knows she cannot provide the necessary help, and it is basically taking its toll on everyone...

[VJ]

I managed to repurpose an old Samsung tablet as an ebook reader (using the app ReadEra). Positioned on a stand it should be possible for her to use: a tap on the right side of the screen for next page, on the left side of the screen for previous page does not require fine skills and is doable. It is too early at this time though, but it does seem like an option. The old tablet is too slow for anything else, but inside this app it is fine. In flight mode with screen brightness slightly turned down, the battery survives very long.

I'm now also thinking if anything is possible with MacroDeck (an app that allows one to use a tablet as input device, with programmable buttons), but that only works as input to a computer. Still, maybe there is a way... First still working on the Arduino thing as that seems more certain and faster to do.

Yesterday we managed to move her from the bed to a comfortable chair and managed to get her to enjoy some nature documentaries on Netflix (she like such documentaries). She managed to sit upright for more than 3 hours, which is already a huge success. Still a long road ahead till she can live alone again - if that will be possible at all.