Isolation hurts all of us. The journal Nature notes that cooperation is the basis for much of humanity’s success over the ages. As a social creature, therefore, humans in isolation tend to become depressed. To deal with this problem, several businesses have set up adult day care for seniors. It may seem like a strange premise, but nothing could be more natural. By offering seniors a chance to interact with others, adult cay cares help residents maintain their mental health. In the unique circumstances, the world is mired in these days. It’s an approach that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Impact of COVID-19 On Seniors
Seniors have been on the receiving end of a lot of limitations thanks to COVID-19 lockdowns. The CDC states that older adults are the most vulnerable demographic for COVID-19 deaths. The increasing spike in infections makes going to adult day cares a risky business, especially those facilities that aren’t strict with their interaction rules. Luckily, not all adult cay cares are being hobbled, and many of them are adopting a very proactive approach to their adult daycares.
Remote Zoom Meetings
The Daybreak Adult Day Care is known for being one of the pioneers in the field. To deal with the shelter-in-place orders, the company has temporarily shut down its adult day care program. However, the program was developed to enable seniors to have a place to interact with others. The closure of their meeting hall has left seniors in the same position they were before. However, Daybreak has a plan, and it requires using one of the most common online technologies for it to work.
Zoom has made waves recently for making it easy to develop remote rooms for people to come together. Teachers are using it for class, and corporate offices have adopted it in some cases as a cheaper alternative to other teleconferencing software. Daybreak has leveraged the power of Zoom to restart its adult day care program with a twist. Residents can now login to the group chat and interact with others just as if they’d be doing so face to face. They can even play games with other residents, adding depth to the activities that seniors can do online.
Reopening Schedules Remain Unclear
While at the moment, there’s no vaccine for the COVID-19 virus, the world is shrouded in uncertainty. There’s no word on how long businesses will have to remain closed. Since the core users for an adult day care are likely to be in the high-risk group, these organizations are likely to remain closed for longer than others. It’s for the patrons’ safety, of course, but a lack of interaction might be just as dire for their mental states. With these zoom meetups, Daybreak offers something to them that it’s no doubt that they miss. The camaraderie and cheer that’s evident on these meetings are unique and shows how much these seniors appreciate the time they get to interact with others, even if it’s just through a screen.