Dad cannot operate TV remote control by himself. Any advice?

That's great info MWB123. Sometimes you have to try a few things to get one that works.

I see that I posted upthread in July 2014 about a basic remote that my cousin could use. Sadly, it didn't last long. She soon forgot about turning on a tv. It's not something that interest her anymore. I do hate that, because she used to enjoy her tv so much. Now, it doesn't capture her attention for more than 10 seconds.

This was a big problem for my dad. I bought a ton of different ones and never did find a solution. Good to see new options.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to spend a day in the ER with my cousin who has a fractured arm. It was a long day with a lot of waiting between tests. I put the tv in our cubicle on Bonanza, one of her old favorite shows, but she hardly noticed it. It was like she couldn't focus at all. I then put it on ACC Basketball, her former very FAVORITE sport, besides wrestling. ACC basketball is like a religion in NC. She smiled, but couldn't look at the screen for more than a few seconds. It's just not there any longer.

As I read this I am chuckling. This must be a very common problem. Another problem is my aunt turns the tv off during commercials, "to save electricity". We have lost movies this way, and have learned to take the remote with us on a bathroom trip. AND we have a puppy who loves to chew anything we touch. Working on our 4th remote!

Anybody want to make some serious money? Make a dementia-proof TV controller. Or a dementia TV all together...one that comes on and plays a pre-programmed selection of shows (travelogues, Bonanza, Sky King, whatever) for a set period at a set volume. In a box with NO controls and a hidden plug (stops them from unplugging it). I had a video picture show frame for Mom. She kept unplugging it (it showed a series of still photos). Finally I asked her why and she said the pictures made her sad. Oh well.

Remember when the TV had one button to turn it on and off and a dial to turn the channel? You had to actually stand up back then. Those were the days...

Yogagirl, we burned a lot of calories back then getting up off that sofa :)

I wonder if the downfall of more people not being as healthy all started with the invention of the remote control and the Lazyboy recliners :P

From my post earlier, find Button Blocker
buttonblocker

My dad likes the news and will watch football if I turn the TV on. But many times when I visit him it is unplugged.
Mom used to have control of the remote so I am not to surprised he doesn't know how to use it.

The Flipper remote that SunnyGirl1 is referring to DOES work with cable boxes. It also has a solution to the out of syncing issue between TV and cable box that JesseBell mentioned. There is a code you can type in that will keep the cable box on all the time, so that the on/off button only controls the TV and therefore never gets out of sync. I installed this or my father's TV in an AL facility, and it is working extremely well. Depending on the TV, setup can take while, but there are several ways to do it, and it should work with any TV. Another great feature it has is the ability to program in his favorite channels, so that the rest don't appear.

The Flipper isn't compatible with my moms cable box in her AL.i read that on the Flippers website..have they fixed the issue?

I don't know what cable box your mom has, but I had no issue with the one in my dad's AL facility. I tried all the numbers listed for the box, and it worked with the highest (newest) number.

The Flipper worked fine at my house, but not AL. According to the Flipper website last July/August the box I got from Comcast merged with another company and it was not compatible with Flipper..I also have Comcast Cable at my house. She has been using remote that she got from Comcast somewhat easily..we set up the Favorites.

I'm sooo glad to find this thread! I also get soooo frustrated with the TV remote. Technology is great if you're a techie with great sight, but an elderly person with dementia struggles with the remote.

I bought the TEK remote for my Dad (the button blocker is WAY too small. Daddy is legally blind) and ended up super gluing a textured button to the CHANNEL UP button and told him to only use that one.

That helps some, but he has a habit of falling asleep with the remote in his hand which he drops and the batteries fall out meaning it needs to be reprogrammed).

The whole digital TV thing is a HUGE thorn in my side, especially when it comes to seniors. Dad's AL offers about 40 channels BUT the cable company makes them use a cable box. It's really hard to get a senior with dementia (or without it for that matter) to understand that you must activate the TV AND the cable box to get the channels to change.

I miss the days of a cable going directly from the TV to the wall and having one remote to control everything.

My semi solution is to tell Dad to NEVER turn off his TV. When his remote "breaks" (meaning the programming has gotten messed up again), he's forced to watch the same channel until I can come by to fix it. The AL staff hasn't learned to program the large TEK remote. Instead, they will pull out the small remote that controls the cable box. I can barely see the buttons on that one.

Sometimes I think technology forgets about seniors (My Dad can't see a Jitterbug cell phone to save his life...)

Another option may be the Channel Chum assistive TV remote control