Jan 2021
Daphne enjoys family video calls streamed through TV
“It’s very clever what we can do now,” said Daphne after speaking to her sons via laptop and TV.
Daphne has lived at Edwardstow Court, Stow on the Wold, for over two years. Prior to the pandemic her sons, who lived locally would visit her weekly at the home. However, due to current restrictions, the home has looked for suitable ways for the family to see each other.
The option of using an iPad for a virtual meeting was ruled out as it was too small for 97-year old Daphne who is hard of hearing and has poor eyesight to use. They had also trialled a meeting using a COVID-19 safe, indoor visiting room, with glass separating the family members, however Daphne struggled to hear the conversations, even with the intercom and hearing loop system.
Edwardstow Court came up with a new solution, a TV screen alongside a laptop. Together these provided a large enough screen and suitable audio for Daphne and her two sons, Andrew and Mark to communicate comfortably.
Daphne used to work in a Post Office in London for many years, as she said: “it was a very posh post office in a post part of London”. Using technology to see and talk with her sons has been “amazing and a joy”. She said: “It’s amazing what we can do now.”
Deputy Home Manager, Sian Howse, said: “It took some trial and error to find a way to bring the family together so that Daphne could see them. We are delighted that using a large TV screen and laptop has worked well and we will be arranging these calls weekly.”