Simple video calls to break coronavirus isolation for the elderly 

Due to the coronavirus, the government imposed a ban on visits to all nursing homes before Easter. In order to break social isolation and make it easier for the elderly and their relatives to stay in touch via video calls, Telenor is launching a collaboration with the start-up company Loopeli, where nursing homes are equipped with tablets adapted for seniors. The goal is to distribute as many adapted tablets as possible to nursing homes around Sweden.

-"Rarely has society relied so much on digital communication as it does now, and for the isolated elderly, it is perhaps the single most important bridge to the outside world. At a time when digital contact between loved ones is needed most, I am proud that Telenor can contribute by providing nursing homes around the country with tablets adapted for seniors," says Ulrika Steg, Head of Corporate Business at Telenor.

Together with Loopeli, Telenor will in the coming weeks provide ten nursing homes around Sweden with tablets adapted for seniors. Initially, 100 tablets will be lent free of charge to the nursing homes for the duration of the visiting ban. During the period, it is also possible for relatives to download Loopeli free of charge to their own mobile phone.

My vision was to develop a service to make it easier for me and my then 95-year-old father, who lived in a nursing home, to stay in touch. Unfortunately, I did not get the opportunity to realize it with him, but I am proud that with the help of Telenor we can now get a solution with specially adapted tablets so that even those who are less tech-savvy can continue to have contact with their relatives when they are isolated, says Thomas Sidén, founder of Loopeli.

The tablets available to care homes are intuitively designed with just three icons for video calls, picture messaging and radio. In turn, relatives can download an app that easily connects to the tablets.

-When a group of people is excluded from society as a whole, it is natural for us to help. Our goal with this is to make everyday life easier for as many families as possible and hopefully make it easier to celebrate a digital Easter together. Loopeli has developed a really good solution for this and now we are working hard to get the product out to as many people as possible when it is needed most," says Ulrika Steg.

The initiative was positively received when it was tested at the Kyrkbyn elderly home in Stora Sköndal and more tablets are already on their way. For the next step, talks are now underway with other actors, including Team Olivia, one of the largest private actors providing elderly care around the country, as well as in Norway and Denmark.

The Loopeli website can be found here.