Charity gifts easy-to-use remote controls to ward

Patients who are undergoing rehabilitation treatment at Overdale Hospital are benefitting from easy-to-use remote controls that have been donated by a sight impairment charity.

Samarès Ward has been given six remote controls by EYECAN, Jersey’s only charity dedicated to supporting islanders with sight impairment. The Doro easy universal remote controls are specially designed for people with sight loss and limited dexterity as they feature simple, large buttons that are easy to see and press.

The ward is also financing a further 27 controls so that an easy remote control will be in every patient room.

Brendan Sharkey, acting ward manager, said: "We are very grateful for the gift of these remote controls from EYECAN. These controls give patients more autonomy when it comes to using the TV. We have stroke survivors on the ward, some may lose half their sight and so using a remote control can be difficult.

"Remote controls can be quite complex and can include a number of buttons that can be confusing but these controls are much simpler to use for our patients who may have dexterity issues or visual impairments."

Chris Frost, rehabilitation officer at EYECAN, said: "A number of our clients may spend time on Samarès Ward and as a charity we wanted to do something to make their stay as comfortable as possible. People can spend long periods of time on the ward so hopefully these controls will make things a little bit easier."