At Inspire we are always looking for ways to utilise technology to enhance the lives of the people we support.
During a meeting of the Positive People Improvement Council late last year the subject of technology and support was being discussed and Miles Davies, Head of Operations, mentioned that some Amazon Alexa equipment - an Alexa with a screen, smart plugs and a fire-stick - had been purchased by Inspire for people to try. He also told the group about an app called Voiceitt that can be used in conjunction with Alexa.
Voiceitt enables people who may not otherwise be able to communicate with their Smart device to use it independently and Miles was looking for volunteers to try it out. As a keen Alexa user herself, Julie Ewen, Assistant Support Manager at our Aberdeenshire Community Living Project, suggested a few people in the area that might be keen to try it and share their experiences afterwards.
Grant getting up to speed with the Alexa and the Voiceitt App
Grant, who lives at St. James's Court, and is supported by Aberdeenshire CLP, loves music and had a CD player in his room which he used daily. He struggled to change CD's without staff support, however, Julie spoke to him about Alexa and Voiceitt and asked if he wanted to try it. Julie was already in the process of getting WiFi installed for Grant so he could communicate with his family more easily so he gave Alexa a try and loved it!
Happy Grant :)
With a bit of training from Julie and the staff at Aberdeenshire CLP, and through using Voiceitt, Grant has been able to communicate with Alexa and ask for songs or artists he wants to listen to. He has also had a smart plug fitted to a lamp so he can switch the light on and off by saying "Alexa light on please". He has also been able to ask "Alexa, what's the Aberdeen football score?" or "Alexa, tell me a joke". Staff have also helped him to find new recipes by telling Alexa some of his favourite foods. Grant enjoyed it so much that his cousin bought him his own Alexa device for Christmas and he is continuing to learn about its many capabilities. Grant says "I love my Alexa, she is fun and knows all my favourite music".
Marie has changed from using CD's to Digital Music
Julie had been thinking of someone else supported by Aberdeenshire CLP who might benefit from an Alexa - Marie. Marie's mum had told Julie about her growing CD collection and that she has been struggling to get the latest CD's Marie wants. She also said the amount of CD's Marie has was taking over her living room so Julie suggested that Marie could try Alexa with a Spotify account as a solution.
Marie loves listening to music and once it was set up she discovered she could ask Alexa to play all the music she loves and found she can hear new music before the CD's are available to buy in Tesco. She enjoyed the Alexa and found it very easy to use, so much so that she got her own one! She has since started to box up her CDs so she has more room in her living room to dance around whilst listening to her music on her new Alexa!
Other people supported by Aberdeenshire CLP already have an Alexa which they use for a variety of things such as setting a timer while they brush their teeth. It really has so many functions which can provide people with more independence. Julie uses the timer function while cooking as well as to listen to books on Audible.
Julie has now suggested to her colleagues at another service that the ladies who live there might also like to try Alexa and Voiceitt and so all the equipment has now been passed onto them so they can learn about all the great things that can be done to enhance people's lives with this technology.