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In the past two years, the GoLiveHealth program has proven itself in a series of municipalities in the Netherlands. Each of these municipalities has committed itself to the rolling out and upscaling of the program within their own area. Other municipalities have now shown an interest in doing the same. Below a few testimonials, from participants to sports coaches.
Participant, ninety years old
“I speak to my son every day now, via WhatsApp. I do daily exercises, I walk the necessary miles; it might sound silly, but I really benefit from the ‘reward’ I get once I achieve my daily goals: it motivates me. The program helps me be independent, and it brings my children peace of mind: they know I’m safe, and able to reach them immediately in case of an emergency. In this way, I am hoping to spend a few more years at home!”
‘Super user’, seventy-five years old
“Many older adults are coping with a serious lack of digital skills. This has unfortunately left them with an information lag, which in turn makes it harder for them to participate in today’s society. They don’t know how to access the municipality’s app, the app developed by their health insurance company, the online version of their local paper. Especially since the beginning of the corona crisis, we have noticed how much people benefit from some digital dexterity. People tell us how happy they are to be able to video call their children and grandchildren on their smartphone, and to send messages, photos and videos to other participants in the WhatsApp groups. The participants support each other greatly, and cheer one another up: an important form of loneliness prevention in these hard corona times.”
Super user’, seventy-eight years old
“While many older adults get stuck or lost in default smartphone operating systems, the GoLivePhone app makes the benefits of the smartphone accessible to anyone. Things like WhatsApp and email enrich people’s communication channels significantly, and thus their chances at expanding and sustaining their social network: chatting with a sister in England; taking, sending and receiving photos from children and grandchildren; I have seen eighty-year olds to whom an entire new world had just opened itself up. Gaining insight into activity levels is also important, and so are the feelings of safety people experience due to the fall detection functionality: the button with which users make immediate contact with a caregiver when in need.”
Sportcoach
“Every week, we come together in little groups to work on things like balance, stability, coordination. One important aim of this is fall prevention: because we regularly repeat certain important exercises, participants really start retaining their balance much better – our work yields important results!
Participants are stimulated to exercise at home – using the GoLiveVital application – on the one hand, and on the other hand they enjoy the social experience of meeting in groups, exchanging and sharing experiences. Sometimes I will further explain one of the exercises in the app, and we always go over the participants weekly goals together: which have been achieved? After every session we all stay and chat over a cup of coffee.”
“The Dutch municipalities of Veldhoven, Heeze-Leende and Someren hereby declare a commitment to upscaling the GoLiveHealth initiative. We find value in this project, and we support it. We are prepared to play a role in introducing the program to our citizens, encouraging them to participate.”