Five Ways to Connect with Seniors During the Holidays

Senior Health  |  December 12, 2023

Five Ways to Connect with Seniors During the Holidays

Find five ways to connect with seniors during the Holidays and meaningful ways to make sure older adults are physically and mentally healthy and feeling the joy of the holiday season.

Connection isn’t just important during the big days on the calendar – it includes time throughout the season between holiday celebrations.

Senior Isolation Can Lead to Depression

Feelings of senior isolation and loneliness can lead to depression. It doesn’t take much time or effort to brighten someone’s day with a smile and hello in any shape or form. And with so many seasonal activities on hold, many need to find new ways to stay connected.

From parents, grandparents, and elderly neighbours to friends and family in other cities and provinces, here are a few ways to connect with others when you can’t be together in person.

Three Ways to Connect with Seniors During the Holidays:

1. Connect with Seniors through phone calls: Don’t underestimate the joy a daily or weekly phone call can bring. Most seniors have a phone readily accessible. Schedule a call or reach out when you know they’ll be available. Spend time during the holidays to talk about past celebrations, family updates, and everyone’s wellbeing. Get silly, sing holiday songs together, and remember to find reasons to laugh together.

2. Connect with Seniors over video calls: Several apps and websites are equipped to facilitate a video call. Many seniors are familiar with this technology, but some are not. Have someone in their household help set up a video call and show them how to connect

Families may consider gifting an electronic device like a tablet or smartphone to seniors who don’t have access to a video system. Even for those familiar with the technology, respect everyone’s time and schedule video calls with loved ones when they are available.

Find ways to make it special – decorate your background, send your senior loved ones small items to decorate theirs, use holiday frames or use the time to sing or read stories together.

3. Connect with Seniors over recorded video messages: Another way to spread holiday cheer over video is with recorded video messages. Have family and friends record a short video and send it to a senior loved one. Some apps make recording and editing videos quick and easy, and being able to see loved ones at any time is a true gift for many seniors.

Two More Ways to Connect with Seniors Over the Holidays:

4. Connect with Seniors through letters and postcards: Nothing beats a surprise note in the mailbox. Take pen to paper with a handwritten message or type and print a longer letter to share a personal update, favourite memory, or story.

As a special bonus, add a few printed pictures to the envelope. Remember to reach out to senior loved ones early and often during the holidays. Set up a pen pal exchange or send frequent notes with favourite holiday memories.

5. Connect with a Senior for a safe visit: There are many creative ways to show older adults love during the holidays. Leave a handwritten note on their front porch, stand outside with signs and banners, have a family drive-through holiday parade for a senior, leave a thoughtful gift on their doorstep, or sing carols.

Comfort Keepers® in Edmonton Can Help with In-Home Elder Care!

If you are concerned about the health and well-being of your aging loved ones we can help with retirement care, 24-hour care, respite care, senior care, companionship care, end-of-life care, post-surgery care, palliative care, personal care, senior living transition services, and much more! 

Comfort Keepers®’ are trained caregivers who help provide senior clients with the highest quality of life possible to keep them happy and healthy at home. 

Companionship Care and Interactive Caregiving™

Our Interactive Caregiving™ provides a system of care that addresses companionship, safety, nutrition, mind, body, and activities of daily living (ADLs).

Moreover, our trained caregivers are selected with one specific quality: empathy. Empathetic care is care that starts in the heart, and it allows us to meet our client’s exact needs. 

Home Care Edmonton

To learn more about senior care in Edmonton, contact the Comfort Keepers® office to discuss our unique service offering. If you live in Devon, Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or Stony Plain and surrounding areas, contact Comfort Keepers at 780-465-4665.

Is Invoicing Modelling and Client Direct Home Care the Right Option for You?

Comfort Keepers® Edmonton is an Approved Service Provider for the Client Directed Homecare Invoicing (CDHCI) Program Offered by Alberta Health Services. Read more about the program HERE.

Comfort Keepers® Edmonton is here to help you and your loved ones get the best care possible. Recently awarded the “Accredited with Exemplary Standing” seal by Accreditation Canada, our Edmonton location has achieved the highest available certification in Canada for Home Care services, clearly demonstrating Comfort Keepers’ commitment to offering safe, high-quality home care to its senior clients in Edmonton.

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