To limit the spread of coronavirus, visits to nursing homes have been restricted for the last few months, which has left a lot of seniors isolated and lonely. To help combat this, some agencies for the elderly have come up with creative ways to make up for a lack of social contact.
The Alabama Department of Senior Services and state agencies that manage programs for seniors in New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania have started a pilot project that provides lifelike robotic companion pets to the elderly. They’re working with robotic pet manufacturer Ageless Innovation to help get the pets - which look, feel and sound like real pets - to isolated seniors to bring them comfort.
And it seems to be working. In Alabama and New York, the programs have seen promising results and participants report feeling less isolated.
Source: CNN