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Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

venturebeat.com

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Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#11

Post by saltcured »

ido wrote: post #9
zwieback wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've found that change in general is the problem. My grandma was able to use her old tube radio no problem but when it broke she never used the newer stereo, even though she only had to push one button. 30 years later same issue with my mom, she can navigate very complex tasks no problem but has trouble with anything new, even if it's much "easier" to use. The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whateve…

I wonder at what age that typically (if there is a typical experience) happens? My mother is in her mid 70s and very far from a techie or tech-interested (worked in textiles/fashion, never used a computer before the current century & then first only for making free international calls via Skype as was setup by us) & slowly but surely adapted to some small variety of new tech especially after retirement when she had m…

I think your parenthetic comment hints at the truth. There isn't a typical age, rather a wide age band where individuals may experience different declines.

With dementia, the descent can seem very rapid. One year, they are functioning well and adapting, but suddenly you realize they are in deep trouble. For a while, their adaptive energy may be devoted to covering up deficiencies. So, when this coping mechanism fails, the struggle suddenly emerges for all to see.

But, some people may fit the description of "unable to learn new things" long before that sort of dementia is relevant. They may be depressed, or may have a prideful personality which avoids the unknown because any trial and error learning is embarrassing. Frustratingly, it can also be hard to get elders in this category to go anywhere near a doctor for a better evaluation. And without a better understanding of what is going on, it can be difficult to identify an appropriate intervention or care approach.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#12

Post by et-al »

zwieback wrote: post #7
pnutjam wrote: post #3

My Mother-in-law could never figure out how to use a touchscreen phone. Getting her own phone line was very difficult and finding a good flip style phone is getting harder and harder. I found that many newer models of cordless home phones will bluetooth tether to a cellphone. This way we could keep her phone plugged in and charged and she could just use the cordless style phone she was already accustomed to.

I've found that change in general is the problem. My grandma was able to use her old tube radio no problem but when it broke she never used the newer stereo, even though she only had to push one button. 30 years later same issue with my mom, she can navigate very complex tasks no problem but has trouble with anything new, even if it's much "easier" to use. The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whateve…

> The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whatever the old generation grew up with.

Sounds like skeuomorphism. Wait for the next generation of designers to bring it back.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#13

Post by zwieback »

saltcured wrote: post #11
ido wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder at what age that typically (if there is a typical experience) happens? My mother is in her mid 70s and very far from a techie or tech-interested (worked in textiles/fashion, never used a computer before the current century & then first only for making free international calls via Skype as was setup by us) & slowly but surely adapted to some small variety of new tech especially after retirement when she had m…

I think your parenthetic comment hints at the truth. There isn't a typical age, rather a wide age band where individuals may experience different declines. With dementia, the descent can seem very rapid. One year, they are functioning well and adapting, but suddenly you realize they are in deep trouble. For a while, their adaptive energy may be devoted to covering up deficiencies. So, when this coping mechanism fails…

Agreed. My dad was a physics professor and researcher who started his career in silicon valley in the 60s. You'd think he'd be interested in computer stuff but he lost his interest or maybe, like you're saying, finds trial and error embarrassing.

My mom never went to college but does a lot better with at least basic stuff like email. Once she was super motivated to find a gift for my kids and figured out how to buy it on ebay, something I didn't think she'd be able to do so a lot of it is willingness and motivation.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#14

Post by bluGill »

ido wrote: post #9
zwieback wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've found that change in general is the problem. My grandma was able to use her old tube radio no problem but when it broke she never used the newer stereo, even though she only had to push one button. 30 years later same issue with my mom, she can navigate very complex tasks no problem but has trouble with anything new, even if it's much "easier" to use. The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whateve…

I wonder at what age that typically (if there is a typical experience) happens? My mother is in her mid 70s and very far from a techie or tech-interested (worked in textiles/fashion, never used a computer before the current century & then first only for making free international calls via Skype as was setup by us) & slowly but surely adapted to some small variety of new tech especially after retirement when she had m…

While it is true old people slow down, I think interest in learning is the bigger factor. I know old people who enjoy new toys and get them all the time, even though they struggle [with something younger people find easy) they enjoy the learning and figure it out. I know old people who have no interest in learning anything new in general - yet when presented with something new related to their hobbies can figure it out quickly).

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#15

Post by zwieback »

et-al wrote: post #12
zwieback wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've found that change in general is the problem. My grandma was able to use her old tube radio no problem but when it broke she never used the newer stereo, even though she only had to push one button. 30 years later same issue with my mom, she can navigate very complex tasks no problem but has trouble with anything new, even if it's much "easier" to use. The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whateve…

> The trick would be to have new tech perfectly emulate whatever the old generation grew up with. Sounds like skeuomorphism. Wait for the next generation of designers to bring it back.

True, personally I hated that phase of GUI design but to be honest I don't find the current flat, single-purpose stuff very satisfying either. If I'm honest, I still prefer Windows 3.1/early Mac interface so I'm probably no different from my parents and grandparents.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#16

Post by diggan »

ceceshao1 wrote: post #2

Was a bit surprised to see this piece from VentureBeat (guess that's why they called it OffBeat). My family has been taking care of my grandmother who has Alzheimers and Parkinsons and it's taken a tremendous toll on everyone, especially my father who is the main caretaker. As someone in tech, it's stories and experiences like this that make me wonder if we're working towards something that will help those in need or…

> if we're investing our time/money/energy in the right places

Considering that the biggest technology companies are advertisers, data-collectors and shopping oriented, my initial feeling is "absolutely not".

But it's also hard to get people engaged to trying to help the elderly, until they see the struggle in front of them. Which I'm sure many don't.

I used to work as a elderly-care assistant in Sweden, and while helping with medicin, cleaning and other things are important, most of the people just want to have some company once in a while, and was incredibly grateful for being able to have a honest conversation with a non-doctor.

So my recommendation would be to reach out to elderly-care homes in NYC, and ask them if they need help with basic tasks on weekends/evenings. With that, you'll get time to interact with them as well (although, maybe all this works differently in the US, I have no idea).

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#17

Post by phamjamstudio »

onemoresoop wrote: post #8
ceceshao1 wrote: post #2

Was a bit surprised to see this piece from VentureBeat (guess that's why they called it OffBeat). My family has been taking care of my grandmother who has Alzheimers and Parkinsons and it's taken a tremendous toll on everyone, especially my father who is the main caretaker. As someone in tech, it's stories and experiences like this that make me wonder if we're working towards something that will help those in need or…

There are services in NYC where you can volunteer to simply talk to lonely elderly (or play card games or some other activity) in your neighborhood. I can't provide a link right unfortunately. You have to sign up, they'll verify you and then they'll connect to some lonely elderly in your area. Loneliness and isolation is understated.

My wife and I did this as our first date when we first started dating; we're both Christian if you're wondering why someone would do this on a first date. Unexpectedly, the lady we were to visit literally lived her last hour before she passed away before our eyes. We listened and comforted her husband for the next hour or so. We also listened to the CNA make the difficult calls to her children, some of which were out of state. It was a somber and humbling experience. Our seniors need love just as much as we do.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#18

Post by sjg007 »

This is why mixed use multi generational housing should be developed. You get a community essentially where people can look after each other. Obviously memory care and assisted living is a different ball game but you can still have those facilities in the community as well.

Re: Taking care of the elderly in Silicon Valley – a personal story

#20

Post by alexhutcheson »

phamjamstudio wrote: post #17
onemoresoop wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are services in NYC where you can volunteer to simply talk to lonely elderly (or play card games or some other activity) in your neighborhood. I can't provide a link right unfortunately. You have to sign up, they'll verify you and then they'll connect to some lonely elderly in your area. Loneliness and isolation is understated.

My wife and I did this as our first date when we first started dating; we're both Christian if you're wondering why someone would do this on a first date. Unexpectedly, the lady we were to visit literally lived her last hour before she passed away before our eyes. We listened and comforted her husband for the next hour or so. We also listened to the CNA make the difficult calls to her children, some of which were out…

Wow that's a pretty intense experience for a first date.
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