Before iPhones, hundreds of TV channels and the internet were at our fingertips at any given moment, entertainment came in the form of old radio programs. From drama programs to old news reels, the Yesterday USA radio network app gives senior caregivers and their senior clients the chance to step back in time and listen to programs from when they were younger.
The app accompanies the YesterdayUSA Radio Network website, which was created by the National Museum of Communications, Inc, where users can also listen online. The app features two different streaming stations- the Red Station and the Blue Station. Within the app, users can browse the upcoming schedule of programs ranging from old dramatic theater shows to old music programs and old trivia. The programming runs on a two week loop, so if you can’t catch a program the first time around you can view the next time it’s scheduled to air.
For seniors who may be experiencing an onset of dementia, listening to programs from their past could help spark memories. Familiarity of things from our youth can spark nostalgia in all of us, but for seniors with dementia it can help them remember parts of their lives they may have forgotten otherwise. Seniors and their caregivers might enjoy sitting down together a few times a week to listen to these old programs and talk about how life was back when they aired. Caregivers may learn new things about their senior clients and their lives by hearing stories from when they were young.
The YesterdayUSA App is available for Apple platforms.
Senior caregivers, let us know your feedback on this app and keep us posted if you discover additional apps that assist with caregiving duties and help relieve caregiver stress. You may also refer-a-friend to a senior caregiving job and win prizes weekly and monthly on Caregiverlist.
-Paige Krzysko
