When profoundly deaf Bridport resident John Phillips received a free smartphone from Dorset Council, he had no idea just how much it would transform his life.
The 76-year-old received the gift on Christmas Eve, as part of the council’s drive to help digitally connect people in need during lockdown.
By then John, whose only method of communication is sign language, had spent nine months in lockdown isolation, had very little contact with people and was feeling very low.
With support from Millbrook Healthcare’s Sight and Hearing team in Dorchester, John started to use his smartphone to communicate with people and it changed his life.
In the first few weeks John was in contact with key workers who were able to stay in touch with him over Christmas and the new year.
And by March, with his confidence in using the phone growing, he could reconnect with friends he had not spoken to for more than a year.
John said: “The phone has been an absolute life saver; it’s opened up a whole new world to me and I’m so grateful to have it.
“It took me a while to get to grips with it but I’m getting there!
“The best part has been contacting my friends again via WhatsApp because I had no contact with them for so long.
“I’ve been able to communicate with my oldest friend of 45 years for the first time in more than a year. We send each other videos and messages and it’s been wonderful.”
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