Spare a thought for older people in these extraordinary times. Covid-19 has meant residents of Nursing Homes who are vulnerable to the virus, cannot receive visitors.
John Colbert is a resident in Belmont House Nursing Home in Stillorgan. Betty, his wife, has been unable to visit him for two weeks. "And this is just the start of it," she says. "I'd hate to think if we went into lockdown".
Betty and John talk on the phone every day or they connect via Facetime. Betty has also encouraged John to call friends he may not have spoken to in many years.
Video calls from John’s children and his grandchildren also mean a lot. "It’s an opportunity for them to see their grandad", she says "and to see me".