Amine Choukou, assistant professor at the University of Manitoba’s College of Rehabilitation Sciences and an adjunct professor in the Biomedical Engineering program, published an article on “Caring for the seniors with dementia in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic: 4 things you need to know”
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1. Caregiving for someone with dementia: a whole new role amid COVID-19
Whereas the consequences of social distancing during the COVID-19 crisis are affecting everyone, the effects the pandemic has on persons with dementia may be even worse. Especially informal caregivers, such as family members, are facing various challenges while taking care of seniors and at the same time managing their own social and professional life.
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2. Bringing people closer together: it is not just a matter of technological prowess. It is a matter of working alongside communities rather than for them
Life during the COVID-19 pandemics is especially hard for seniors, in particular seniors with dementia, living in remote areas, facing a lack of access to health care. In order to support those people, many technologies have been developed to reduce social isolation and loneliness. One of those technologies are telepresence robots developed by a research team at the University if Manitoba´s College of Rehabilitation Sciences and community partners.
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3. Why telepresence robot is a timely solution
Telepresence robots support seniors with dementia in their everyday lives and are taking away the burden on family caregivers. Those robots are offering two-way communication through video-based interaction and are therefore allowing the caregivers to leave the house and still be able to care for seniors at the same time.
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4. Impact and longevity
According to the Manitoba Alzheimer´s Society, in less than 20 years, the number of people with dementia living in Manitoba, Canada, should raise from 20.000 to 34.000. That is the reason, why the University of Manitoba´s College is now developing a new telepresence-enabled caregiving service model to support people living with dementia.
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