All the Smart Devices That Can Help Make Life Easier for Your Elderly Parents
You understand the routine: you visit your parents for the holidays and get hired as their personal IT consultant, fixing everything that’s gone wrong since the last time you were there. So it may seem counterintuitive to suggest layering more technology on top of what your parents already have, but hear me out: smart technology can act as assistive devices to help make life easier for seniors, while also ensuring you have easier access to help them when needed . Here are some thoughts on how you can add a little smart technology into the life of an aging parent.
Add a voice assistant
Voice assistants such as Siri, Google or Alexa are not only a way to make life easier by providing information that you would otherwise have to search for; they can also act as accessibility devices and, more importantly, security devices. Note that if you have smart lighting in your home, you can ask an assistant to turn it on when you get up in the middle of the night so you’re less likely to trip. In many cases, you can also use this smart assistant to request assistance. Siri can call 911, and Alexa and Google can get 911 assistance if you pay for a subscription.
However, it’s also nice to get rid of some manpower—all of these assistants can tell you movie times, help you find store hours, and even help you place your grocery order. Once seniors are comfortable with having assistants in their home, the way they likely use their phones, you can start adding other automations and devices.
Let’s look at some robots
Some of the basic physical labor of maintaining a home and yard can be done by robots, and as people age, it is important to recognize that relieving some of this labor can help people stay in their homes longer. Robot vacuum cleaners and mops won’t completely eliminate the need to clean your floors, but they can make a big difference in your daily routine. The same is true for robotic lawnmowers. Once these machines are set up, they can basically run on their own, and you need to make sure that you are alerted if any of these machines do not return to their docks. You don’t want your lawn mower to be stolen or your vacuum cleaner to be tripped over.
Smart countertop appliances can solve kitchen safety problems
There are many countertop appliances available today, from smart toasters to air fryers, microwaves and steamers. Adding smart technology to these devices may seem trivial, but it can serve two very important purposes. Many of these devices control the cooking for you, meaning you can’t overcook (or start a fire). The device simply turns off when your selected product is ready. Secondly, these devices make it much easier to prepare fresh food, which can become cumbersome with age. They will do everything for you: from ideas to instructions, and then the actual preparation.
A video intercom can be a real savior
The idea behind a video intercom is that you don’t have to go to a physical door to talk to the person on the other side, and you can see who’s there and what’s left behind. Essentially, this means you’ll be less likely to have to walk back and forth to the door and feel rushed to get there, which can lead to a fall, but it also means that someone on the other side won’t be able to get your parents to open the door.
Smart technology isn’t just about mitigation, it’s also about entertainment. Place the sprinklers on an automatic button so your dad can turn them on if he needs to remove someone from the lawn. Add smart holiday lights that your parents can play with to create all kinds of light displays all year round. Remember that you need to be able to provide support remotely, so you’ll also need to be the home account admin for anything you set up.