“You feel independent, you can go your own way, but you also know that you’ll never be alone.”
Our main goal, at Gociety Solutions, is what we call ‘humanizing technology’ – adapting technology to the needs and wishes that spring from the everyday lives of real, flesh-and-blood human beings. To help ensure that our technology truly works the way we imagine, we have several test-groups, make sure we get lots of user feedback, and take every single, personal story as seriously as the average company would only take extensive research into their target group. As a testimony to this, we have started visiting users in their own home: to listen to their stories about the role technology plays in their lives. Whether that is a big, leading role – or a tiny, supporting one. In the coming weeks, you will be able to read a new story every week. Today: part two, Mrs. Corrie Tongerloo from Brabant, the Netherlands.
“Older adults are so vulnerable. It’s really important for them to understand how to make use of today’s technology – their lives will improve so much because of that! I know my life has – and I know so many people who just don’t know what to do with these things. I was like that myself at first too. Smartphones? I had no clue as to how they worked or exactly what to do with them. But at some point you just need to adapt to the world around you. Technology keeps on developing, our society is changing rapidly. All my children had a modern smartphone and I was still carrying around this old cell phone. At some point that just stops working.”
“That’s when I discovered Gociety. It’s so much easier! It’s clear and user friendly – I know my way around it well. When you’re a bit older, this system is just much easier to understand. I always carry my smartphone around, now. I use normal functions, like Whatsapp or just the phone, but I also value the fact that I can keep track of all kinds of things: my energy level, the amount of calories I burn, and for instance my risk at falling. I tend to fall a lot, so it’s extremely helpful for me to know these things. I have gained a lot of insight into my own body. When I’m having a good phase, I can walk quite well, but I also have times when suddenly my walking ability goes down – rapidly increasing my risk at falling. Because of the GoLivePhone app, I am starting to figure out the factors that influence this, the indicators – so now I know what to pay attention to. That makes a big difference.”
“Soon, my mother – who’s ninety years old – is getting a GoLivePhone too. I am so pleased by that! That means that I’ll get notified of all sorts of things, just here, at home, on the tablet, and will always know immediately when something is wrong. That way, she can just go do her thing, by herself, because I’ll always know where she is – I can’t explain how much peace that gives me. Look: anything can happen. My parents are both heart patients and they often take the horses into the forest. I always used to worry: what if something happens; I never liked them doing this. But now I know: should something happen, I’ll know immediately. I can even trace them on the map, and follow their exact route. I love that! My mother is looking forward to it as well. She’ll know: ok, phone’s in my pocket, let’s go! – nothing to worry about.”
“I live in a community with a lot of older adults, and I am really trying to stimulate everyone to start using this. It just gives you so much peace. One of my neighbours travels a lot by train, and her son worries about her often – he would love to be able to keep track of how the journey is going. And another thing, should something happen to you: all the information that emergency services need to help you as quickly and accurately as possible is right there, in the device. These are beautiful things. It feels great to know someone is always watching you, looking after you.
