{"id":381991,"date":"2025-08-29T07:57:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-29T07:57:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/381991\/"},"modified":"2025-08-29T07:57:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T07:57:14","slug":"uk-first-as-care-home-digital-project-turns-tvs-into-lifelines-for-connection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/381991\/","title":{"rendered":"UK first as care home digital project turns TVs into lifelines for connection"},"content":{"rendered":"

David Walker Gardens Care Home in Rutherglen is the first in the nation to be fully equipped with Smart Chatta TV.Catherine Bryan and her daughter Kate using Chatta TV alongside Professor Sengupta and Provost Cooper.(Image: ugc)<\/p>\n

Residents at a Rutherglen care home are seeing their loved ones in a whole new light \u2013 thanks to a pioneering digital inclusion project that\u2019s turning televisions into lifelines for connection and care.<\/p>\n

David Walker Gardens Care Home in town is the first in the UK to be fully equipped with Smart Chatta TVs that enable video calls and photo sharing \u2013 a simple but powerful system that\u2019s already reducing social isolation and improving wellbeing among older people.<\/p>\n

For families, the impact has been profound. Kate Bryan, whose mother Catherine lives at the home, said: \u201cIt\u2019s changed everything for my mum. Before, we could call her on a mobile, but she couldn\u2019t really focus on the screen. Now, seeing us on the TV is transformative, it\u2019s as if we\u2019re in the room with her.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing able to connect in such a natural way has brought real closeness back into her life. Even for me, when I\u2019m away on holiday, I can call and see her \u2013 it gives me huge peace of mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve also been able to share photographs directly to the TV, which she really enjoys. It\u2019s so easy to use and it makes her feel more included, more connected and more herself.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Care staff have also seen residents flourish. Megan Watt, enhanced senior social care worker at David Walker Gardens, explained: \u201cTablets and mobiles can be confusing, but TVs are familiar and so our residents feel more confident and connected.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt means so much to residents and their families to have such a simple, direct link. It also helps with communication between residents and staff. You can see the impact \u2013 less anxiety, less isolation, more confidence and stimulation. It just makes them feel more connected.\u201d<\/p>\n

Catherine Bryan and her daughter Kate using Chatta TV alongside Professor Sengupta and Provost Cooper.(Image: ugc)<\/p>\n

Since its roll-out, the system has supported over 750 video calls with loved ones across the globe \u2013 from Canada to Dubai and Australia \u2013 helping maintain sharing of family events and emotional closeness. The technology has proven especially beneficial for residents living with dementia, offering comfort through familiar faces and voices.<\/p>\n

Having visited David Walker Gardens and spoken directly with residents and staff, South Lanarkshire Council Provost Margaret Cooper added: \u201cThis initiative shows what\u2019s possible when we put people first and embrace innovation with compassion. The results speak for themselves \u2013 improved wellbeing, reduced isolation and families drawn closer together, no matter the distance.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we are seeing here is digital inclusion being used to strengthen relationships, support independence and enrich lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building on this success, the South Lanarkshire University Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) is leading a wider roll-out to its other care homes, Meldrum Gardens and McKillop Gardens and its Blantyre LIFE facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is about people, not just technology,\u201d said Professor Soumen Sengupta, chief officer of South Lanarkshire University Health and Social Care Partnership<\/p>\n

\u201cBy re-imagining how technology can support older people, South Lanarkshire\u2019s health and care services are showing that residents in care homes are not just receiving care, they are living fuller, more connected lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Blantyre Leisure Centre closes for four weeks of refurbishments<\/a>READ MORE: New Italian restaurant opening doors in Hamilton<\/a><\/p>\n

The project is being delivered by the HSCP in partnership with the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre and technology partner Care Messenger. Supported by funding from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology through the Glasgow City Region 5G Innovation Fund, it has been independently reviewed and confirmed to deliver significant benefits for residents, their families and care staff alike.<\/p>\n

Professor Sengupta added: \u201cI want to thank our dedicated staff, the residents and families who embraced this innovation and our partner organisations whose collaboration has been vital.\u201d<\/p>\n

*Don’t miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

And did you know Lanarkshire Live<\/a> had its own app? Download yours for free here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

READ MORE: Dobbies launch search for festive team at Sandyholm store<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"David Walker Gardens Care Home in Rutherglen is the first in the nation to be fully equipped with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":381992,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7826],"tags":[81471,748,918,4884,14683,26703,919,712,26402,16,15,12846],"class_list":{"0":"post-381991","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-glasgow","8":"tag-blantyre","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-glasgow","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-lanarkshire","13":"tag-lanarkshire-news","14":"tag-rutherglen","15":"tag-scotland","16":"tag-south-lanarkshire-council","17":"tag-uk","18":"tag-united-kingdom","19":"tag-universities-and-colleges"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381991\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/381992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}