Cell phone for dad. Any advice?

Smartphone or tablet with FaceTime with a familiar picture to open in a single click on the icon is possible. Ask his telephone carrier about this option that best works for your dad's connection. Not sure if question- related, but does your father have a device such as Life Alert with a fall detection to dispatch medical help in an emergency and then contact you for his backup?

I want to address an example about what happened to my late boyfriend of 2020 during the early pandemic that started in March that year. He had only a flip phone from AT&T and refused to obtain internet service because he said internet service was an option. You see, he had an anxiety condition with autism that he refused to change and update his technology. A smartphone or basic tablet such as an iPad could have saved his life. Income taxes were supposed to get filed, but he could not get the forms because all libraries had been closed and forms were only available by Web, requiring him to file an extension into July and beyond. He had suffered a heart condition and could not really contact Kaiser for emergency assistance. Unfortunately, he passed away at age 75 in August 2020 from his health conditions, extreme isolation and stress.

I will share what I found with my man .. He has gone from Mild cognitive impairment to Moderate Neurodegenerative disease (multiple types) . He can no longer use the remote for the TV . He lost the ability to use the phone quite a while ago. I purchased the jitter bug and it was even confusing for me . He just could not learn to use it .. The super simple remote sits unused and the computer is long gone , too . I removed the house phone because he could pick up the receiver but not converse and could not remember who called or what the message was . As time has passed, there are evenings I have to remind him where his bedroom is or where the bathroom is. I
keep a very good eye on him . I am here 24/7 with minor exception. When I am out now , I have someone come in to sit with him . With the distance between you and your dad you might consider outside help coming in . If your mom is with your dad she may need help and not know how to find it . If he has not been tested by a neurologist to find out if there are is something going on with his memory , maybe he should be . If there is an “issue “ there will be so very much to learn. It’s a long ugly road for everyone involved. Watching and caring for anyone who dissolves in front of your eyes is heart breaking ..prayer are with you ..

Hi,
I was experiencing the same issue with my mom. She now lives with us and has, for the past 5 years. Her living alone, declined so much, we felt it was necessary. (Paying multiple months rent in advance, over buying duplicates at the market, because she forgot she already had at home, type stuff)

Her iPhone was too much for her. She would answer and hang up or keep hitting buttons, and activate the FaceTime. She wouldn’t remember how to hang it up either. So, I thought the same thing, try the Jitterbug 3, it’s something new to learn, but may be basic enough with the big icons, also thought, because I work 45 miles away, the alert button on the phone, would be a stress reliever.
I was wrong. She could not manage the new phone at all. She couldn’t hear it for one, because she kept turning the volume down by where the buttons were positioned and how she gripped it. The worst, was she kept calling the alert staff. And because they are nice, she would chat them up.

I finally resorted to buying an Alexa with the big screen and now I can “drop in” at anytime and check in on her. She doesn’t have to answer it.
At first, with written instructions below the device, mom could work it. Now the decline is so bad, she cannot comprehend the instructions to “drop in” on me at work or play her favorite music. So I do that for her from my desk at work. Thank God for technology.

The cell phone just became a burden for her, because she would get frustrated not remembering how to work it and couldn’t comprehend the instructions and always, forgot to charge it.
She has since forgotten that she “wants a cell phone” and she uses mine when she wants to communicate with a friend or another family member.
Good luck with your dad.

Seems your dad will not be able to manage a cell phone. Make sure their landline is dedicated for calls only. Might be able to handle a machine to record calls, in case they don't pick up right away.

How much faxing are your parents really doing? I would strongly suggest that they use a land line with a push button phone so that no matter what, they can answer and make a call. As far as having phone to carry with them when they leave the house or go into the yard, It really depends on what your dads issues are as to whether the jitterbug will help him or not. If he has shaky hands and bad eyesight, the Jitterbug will help because everything is larger. If his cognitive decline is the problem, it won't matter what phone he has, he will struggle.

I bought my mom an old push button phone on ebay to have for her land line in her assisted living apartment, and she could no longer use it. When ringing happened it didn't register to her that the phone needed answered. If you instructed her to pick up the phone, she didn't know which end to put to her ear. It was shocking to me that she had progressed to the point that she couldn't answer a ringing phone, but that was the little bit of hope/denial that I had left I suppose.

I strongly suggest that your folks have a functioning land line in addition to whatever cell you decide on. I have heard good things about RAZ. Good Luck.

Thanks for all the answers and advice. I think unhooking the fax machine will be helpful. The Raz phone looks pretty good too. Sounds like there may be a time when that won’t work either but I think it will help in the near term. I naively always thought technology could help seniors live independently longer as so many things can be done directly on the phone but I did not know dementia would take that away.

I’ll update if we are able to get the Raz and if it works for my dad.