- A DEVICE TO HELP BOTH THE CARED-FOR PERSON AND THE CARER
- A DEVICE TO SUPPORT THE SERVICES PROVIDED BY LOCAL AUTHORITY SOCIAL CARE, NHS TRUSTS AND CHARITABLE SUPPORT GROUPS FOR VULNERABLE INDIVIDUALS IN THE COMMUNITY
PROJECT ALEXA AND HOW IT HELPS
The Project is run by We Care 4 U, a Family run charitable group that neither canvasses for or accepts any donations.
TARGET GROUP- FOR OLDER ADULTS HAVING PHYSICAL OR OTHER DISABILITIES ( INCLUDING BUT NOT EXCLUSIVELY)
WORKING WITH DEMENTIA, PARKINSONS AND ALZHEIMERS PATIENTS, INDIVIDUALS WITH IMPAIRED VISIBILITY AND PHYSICAL DISABILITIES, INDIVIDUALS WISHING TO REMAIN IN THE HOME FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE AND MAINTAINING THEIR INDEPENDENCE
WHAT IS THE PROJECT ABOUT
The Project tries to assist the Cared for Person and their Carer within the home AND to support Local Authority care services in providing a more enhanced support service to Individuals in the Community- all of this to improve and enhance their quality of Life
It does this by using a simple and well-established Device called the Amazon Alexa Show 8 – an AI voice activated lightweight Device that has an 8 inch screen, smart dual stereo speakers and a panoramic super responsive auto-panning and zooming camera to keep you in focus during video calls AND all it requires is for the Individual to have WIFI and the rest is free.
Whilst the Alexa device has over 100,000 skills that could help vulnerable individuals our experience has shown working with such individuals and their carers that it fulfils 3 main important functions and please remember all are voice activated and there is no requirement to be tech savvy or to have a smartphone
COMMUNICATION AND KEEPING IN TOUCH
Free voice activated video and voice calls in the UK and anywhere in the World where the Amazon Alexa is supported and sold. No more need to fiddle around with small buttons on smartphones, remember telephone numbers or have to hold phones with a small screen. Just say “ Alexa call my Daughter “ . The Device also has a “ Drop in “ function which allows Carers to video call in directly without their loved ones having to say “ Alexa answer “ just in case they have had a fall and are dazed
A LIVE IN 24/7 CARER
the device can be simply programmed to give the Individual medication reminders, alarms, prompts to remember to have a cup of tea, put out the bins, make sure the cooker is turned off and the front door is locked, to have lunch , to drink , to call your friend or Family member, put doctors/hospital appointments in your calendar, to remind you of Birthdays, anniversaries, special occasions- the reminders and prompts will be programmed for the specific times and days you want and repeats daily, weekly or just on set days. The Alexa device has such good speakers that you could be 20 feet away, have fallen, nowhere near a phone or a pendant and call “ Alexa please call my Son/Daughter/Carer “ and it makes the call.
A LIVE IN 24/7 FRIEND AND COMPANION
Alexa play Classic FM, what is the weather like today, what time is it, what day is it, Get me BBC Radio 4, Indian Radio stations, whats in my Calendar, play Opera Music, get me BBC News, Sky News, Alexa show me videos of Frank Sinatra singing, Lata Mangeshkar singing, play songs by Abba, Jazz Music, tell me a joke, what time is it in New Delhi, whats the weather like in Barcelona where my daughter lives, Alexa call my Daughter in Barcelona, Alexa show me a video on how to make lasagne. Read me a story. Alexa get me Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube
Alexa is also multicultural and multi-lingual and can take voice instructions in 8 different languages including Hindi and several European languages and can translate from English into many languages e.g. Polish, Swedish, and Chinese- great where English may not be a first language for the cared for Person and visitors can use it to create a friendly atmosphere “ “ Alexa how do you say Hello how are you and are you feeling well today in Hindi “
GET A BETTER IDEA OF HOW THE ALEXA ECHO SHOW DEVICE CAN HELP THOSE YOU CARE FOR AND SUPPORT
Set out below are a couple of links that will give you a better idea of how the Device works and how there are so many functions that can help the Older Adult just by merely speaking to the Alexa Device
30 skills for Older Adults using the Alexa Echo Show
HOW AMAZON ECHO ALEXA HELPS SENIORS WITH DEMENTIAIs Alexa For Seniors? 30 Skills For Older Adults
21 Ways you can use Amazon Alexa for the elderly
HOW CAN IT HELP THE CARER AND OTHER SUPPORT ORGANISATIONS
The Carer/ Other Organisations don’t need an Alexa device to communicate with the Alexa Show Unit but can use their smart phones using the Alexa App.
Whilst Physical presence is the best support where this cannot be done as often as is the case due to timing constraints then e.g a 5 minute video call to check in is a better substitute than a voice call -especially if the Cared for person just has to say Alexa answer.
This unit using even its simplest skills can improve the quality of life and independence of many Older Adults and can be used as a great conduit of support for Carers and Local Authority social care support services.
PROJECT PROPOSAL
We Care will loan out in the first instance an agreed number of units to the Organisation for a period of 1 year for no cost . The aim of the Project is to demonstrate to Carers, Local authority social care groups, NHS Trusts and Charitable Organisations that assist the Vulnerable that these inexpensive Devices can support them in looking after the Cared for Individuals and maintain/improve their quality of life and their chances of independence and remaining within their homes for as long as possible.
We Care ( WC) will program, deliver, install and run through the system with the Carer and the individual being cared for and in advance of this will ask the Carer/ Individual to supply the information to be programmed into the unit e.g reminders and telephone numbers. WC will then support the Alexa for the next 12 months at no cost taking any calls from Unit holders and resolving any issues. There will also be quarterly reviews with the Organisations to monitor the Project and how it is helping.