Simplifying mobile phones and video calls

My dad can no longer use his smartphone: he makes mistakes, hangs up by accident, deletes apps. But he loves talking to us. What solutions are there?

His phone is his social lifeline — it's worth simplifying it rather than letting him give it up. There are solutions for each stage.

Initial stage: simplify what's there

• Activate the smartphone's simple/easy mode (most have one): large icons, fewer screens.
• Leave only the essentials on the home screen: phone, contacts with PHOTOS, and nothing else. Remove games, notifications, and automatic appearance updates.
• Create speed dial with photos: touching his daughter's face calls his daughter.
• Protect against disasters: block purchases/installations, fixed volume, charger always in the same place with a charging routine.

Moderate stage

• Consider a big-button phone with photo buttons and an SOS button — simple, straightforward, and no tricky screens.
• For video calls, reverse the effort: family members call at agreed times; on his side, a tablet fixed in a stand that auto-answers calls from family (there are apps and devices with automatic answering for carers) takes all the work out of it for him.
• Keep calls short and one-on-one: groups on screen can be confusing.

Good to know

If he stops answering, it's rarely disinterest — it's the action that fails. And be careful with the other end of the phone: with decline, vulnerability to phone scams grows; block unknown numbers if necessary.

Sources: Alzheimer's Society (UK); DailyCaring.