How to Encourage Your Senior to Use Technology

While you and your kids may enjoy and understand the benefits of technology, your aging parent may not. They may not understand how social media can keep them connected to extended family and friends. Some senior citizens are frightened at the thought of looking foolish when learning a new software app. Others may be a little stubborn. In all cases, finding ways to encourage your mom or dad to use technology can be a little frustrating. A professional caregiver can step in and assist them and be the go-between if you and your parent get aggravated with each other.

5 Tips to Encourage Your Senior to Use New Technology

Encouraging your stubborn loved one to embrace new technology is much easier when you use these tips:

1. List the Benefits: For some people, understanding how the technology would benefit them makes a difference. You might show your mom pictures on your smartphone that she could have too if she got one. Dad may like to stay up on politics and the news, so showing him how he can access that from a phone or tablet is an excellent place to start.
2. Choose the Right Device for the Job: Your loved one may enjoy holding and using a tablet over a phone or sitting at a desktop computer. Let Mom or Dad use yours and then help them pick the best one for their needs. If they don’t enjoy using the device, they won’t use it.
3. Take It One Step at a Time: Dad may be okay sending texts but hasn’t broadened into video chats. Start slow and show him one step, such as FaceTime, then you can show him other apps like Zoom or another video chat app.
4. Enlist Your Children: If you and your mom clash each time you try to show her something, use a different tactic—your grandchildren. The bond they form during the process will be priceless and save your relationship, too. A trained personal support worker can help run a buffer, too.
5. Be Patient: You need to be patient as you show your dad how to read his Twitter feed. It might take explaining things a few times before they get it. The goal is not to rush through but to empower them to embrace new things. That will happen if you slow down and patiently answer their questions.

Professional Caregivers Make Using Technology Easier for Seniors

You don’t have to get discouraged if your mom struggles to use her voice-activated system. An experienced team member from Home Instead Kitchener-Waterloo, ON can ensure she gets what she needs and encourage her to keep learning. We have many services that empower our seniors to continue growing socially, physically, and mentally. To learn about how we can provide personal care, light housekeeping, cooking, companionship, and other home care services, contact us today.

Call us at (519) 571-1665 to schedule a no-obligation, in-home consultation. Learn more about the compassionate, quality senior care we deliver every day, to families in Kitchener-Waterloo, Breslau, Conestogo, Elmira, St Jacobs, and surrounding areas.