I went in for surgery and came out to a 28 days’ later scenario. I was probably lucky to have the surgery at all as everything shut down after. I was isolated from then, about two weeks before the lockdown. I am no stranger to being secluded at home with no contact, as I moved around during my 20’s this was often been the case and then again when I had my son. Being a new mum was a period of time where I barely left the house or had contact with people. I also work from home so this is not a new development for me.
But these are strange times. And as we try to adapt, change, predict, cope and generally try to look after ourselves and our friends, our families, our communities whilst social distancing.
How are we really coping?
I went shopping the other day and the sight of an empty town centre, with but a few cars around and the cars I did see had people wearing masks in them. I had this strange sadness come over me, a feeling of loss for what once was, tears rolled down my face, trying to be strong but it was overwhelming. I think that is normal. We are grieving a loss of life as we knew it and will probably do so for some time. Life before wasn’t perfect but it made sense. It is what we were used to, we are creatures of habit.
On the whole though it seems everyone is adapting as quickly as they can. Services, conferences, exercise classes, etc. have moved online. I can probably access more things now than I ever could before. It is both overwhelming and comforting. I have championed digital and its possibilities for a while now and to have seen it become a service delivery is awesome. I don’t think we will ever go back to it being a side thought or something we do alongside our work, it is here to stay, a permanent fixture in the way we consider delivering services.
Digital services could offer a real path to inclusivity and as we refine it as a delivery tool and consider those that we are not reaching yet, we could potentially increase impact.
How do we do this?
The government digital service offers a checklist:
1. Start with user needs - not our own
2. Improve access - stop making things difficult
3. Motivate people - find something they care about
4. Keep it safe - build trust
5. Work with others - don’t do it alone
6. Focus on wider outcomes - measure performance
The national lottery Community fund offers tips on improving access:
But the real questions are how to we motivate and include the people to guide the work of organisations so that it really meets the needs of those they want to reach? How to we support greater collaboration, partnerships and joint working in this new digital connectedness?
I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions.
It’s not about going back. This is about moving forward. It’s a chance to work together to build something better, smarter and stronger. - Marie Forleo