Mark is a widower and a retired doctor in his 90s. He lives alone and finds it hard to fight against depression and loneliness since his wife passed away. He feels irritated that he can no longer do many of the things that he used to enjoy.
Mark is not alone. Around one-quarter of people aged 65 or above live alone in Australia. There are many older people like Mark vulnerable to social isolation.
However, not all seniors who are socially isolated live alone. Loneliness and social isolation are not necessarily connected with the age, but social isolation in old age is a serious concern. It not only leads to depression but is also often linked to a range of physical health conditions.
Unfortunately, it is not easy for the oldies to beat loneliness. They cannot participate in all social activities due to their limited mobility.
Luckily, the internet could be of great help in such an event. The infographic below by MedAlertHelp.org shows that more and more elderlies are going online in search for fun and engaging content and activities.
Social networking is no more restricted only to the young. According to PeW Research Center, more than 50% of the Americans aged 65 and above use Facebook.
Furthermore, 71% of older internet users go online every day, while 11% of them go online at least three to five times a week.
All these statistics are an indication of a positive change. The internet undoubtedly would help the seniors in getting over their boredom and loneliness as they age.
To find out more about the internet habits of our seniors, check out the infographic here: https://medalerthelp.org/elderly-the-world-wide-web-infographic/
__small.png)
