The Best Tech Support Services for Seniors Leave a comment

I like my 78-year-old mom and do no matter I can to assist. However when she has laptop bother, she spins right into a annoyed tech spiral, begins lashing out, and I would like nothing to do along with her. The unbiased lady who taught me to be resourceful by sending me to the dictionary now needs her outcomes the simple method—for me to repair it in seconds—whereas I see a chance to show her the right way to assist herself. Consequently, we find yourself bickering.

We aren’t alone. In keeping with the Pew Research Center, there are presently 62 million adults over the age of 65 within the US. That quantity is anticipated to succeed in 84 million—and leap from 18 % to 23 % of the inhabitants—by 2054. That’s plenty of seniors, and a heck of plenty of tech help.

“Generally studying from non-family members works finest, as a result of we are usually extra affected person with different folks,” says Skye N. Leedahl, a professor of human improvement and household science on the College of Rhode Island. Leedahl performs analysis because the college’s principal investigator that focuses on high quality of life and well being points for older adults. The college has a tech help program of its personal, a collaboration with a North American tech-support nonprofit often called Cyber-Seniors.

And that’s not the one such group. Tom Kamber, the manager director of Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) and the Senior Planet academic program at AARP says in an electronic mail: “Older persons are more and more utilizing tech for studying about wholesome residing and medical points, about funds {and professional} expertise—some are nonetheless working—and easily to remain sharp mentally.”

Kamber and a corps of volunteers launched OATS in 2004 to advertise digital literacy amongst our older friends. They obtain it by their Senior Planet program (extra under) in addition to their advocacy and scholarship. OATS.org gives a glimpse into the group’s 20-year historical past, its outreach and connectivity packages, and its on-line neighborhood portal/social community. The web site additionally has an interactive finder that means that you can enter your zip code to discover a Senior Planet companion web site close to you.

And people are simply the business OGs. The excellent news is there’s a wealth of choices—a few of them are even free. The tech help websites listed under cater particularly to seniors.

Having different tech choices is certainly going to assist Mother and I. Having a impartial third celebration iron out her technical points means I received’t should resent the strain of being the resident “tech guru,” and he or she received’t should resent my makes an attempt to coach her. It ought to free me as much as concentrate on appreciating the time we’ve got collectively. Right here’s hoping it does the identical for you and the seniors in your life.

Senior Planet From AARP

Created in 2015, the novice-friendly Senior Planet website boasts a cohesive compendium of free on-line content material: articles, programs, lectures, demo movies, and workshops geared toward our elders (in English, Spanish, and Cantonese). The choices vary from studying the right way to use a smartphone to digital train lessons to in-person meetups. The premier senior vacation spot served upwards of half 1,000,000 folks final yr and exhibits no indicators of slowing down; they even have their very own podcast. The group began with one in-person location in New York Metropolis and now boasts satellite tv for pc places in North Nation, New York; Montgomery County, Maryland; Denver; San Antonio; and Miami. Digital one-on-one coaching—through Zoom—can be accessible.

Service hours are 9 am to eight pm ET, Mondays by Fridays; 9 am to 2 pm ET on Saturdays. E mail information@seniorplanet.org or name (888) 713-3495.

Cyber-Seniors

Cyber-Seniors was impressed by a 2014 documentary that adopted a neighborhood of Canadian seniors studying to make use of the web for the primary time. The North American org (it operates in Canada and the US) gives coaching and free one-on-one tech help by pairing seniors with scholar volunteers for an intergenerational expertise that each events be taught from. There are volunteers who communicate English, Spanish, and French. The positioning includes a e-newsletter, weekly occasions calendar, webinar, toll-free tech help, coaching for volunteers and seniors, merchandise, clips from the film, and a bit devoted to cybersecurity safety. The group has North American companions throughout two-thirds of the continent which have Cyber-Seniors packages (the College of Rhode Island is certainly one of them).

Service hours are 8 am to 4 pm ET. E mail scheduling@cyberseniors.org or name (844) 217-3057.

Quincy

Quincy was based by Ryan Greene whereas he was a scholar at Columbia Enterprise Faculty in 2020 to assist his grandfather and the opposite mature adults in his life having tech bother. Distant tech help periods are carried out through secured connections and recorded, must you wish to revisit them sooner or later. Quincy additionally gives fraud safety: A tech help crew critiques your emails, texts, voicemails, and social media for con video games. There’s even a weblog with posts geared toward non-techies. Plans begin at $5/month, and the corporate additionally gives 14 minutes per thirty days of free help to Medicare recipients

Service hours are 8 am to eight pm ET. Message Quincy’s workers through the chat help characteristic on the web site or name (208) 557-8466.

Candoo

CEO and creator Liz Hamburg created Candoo in 2019 after having “skilled firsthand the frustration that my mother and father have felt coping with know-how.” Plans for one-to-one tech concierge help encompass a single one-hour session ($75) or an annual membership ($228/yr for singles, $340/yr for {couples}). Assist and coaching are additionally accessible in English and Spanish on the enterprise membership stage for senior facilities, nursing houses, and different care amenities. Memberships additionally embrace a free how-to library, videoconferencing instruments, on-line buying guides, and a downloadable pill comparability sheet.

Service hours are 9 am to eight pm ET. E mail help@candootech.com or name (646) 758-6606.

The Smarter Service

Began by enterprise companions Terry Dry and Greg Boles as “a personalised tech concierge service for older adults,” the Smarter Service gives its prospects customized one-on-one technical help primarily based on the complexity of their digital wants. Prospects are assigned the identical concierge each time they use the service. In-person coaching is accessible within the higher Los Angeles and Orange Counties in California; Scenic and Scottsdale, Arizona; and Columbus and Indianapolis, Indiana. Assist can be accessible for senior facilities, nursing houses, and different retirement communities. Smarter Service gives free consultations that will help you choose a plan. Annual memberships begin at $125 per thirty days, however different tailor-made packages can be found.

Service hours are 9 am to five pm PT, Mondays by Saturdays. E mail information@thesmarterservice.com or name (805) 765-8348.