Plastic "bubble" helps bring families back together

Plastic "bubble" helps bring families back together

A giant plastic bubble with adjoining tubes may look out of place in the garden of an elderly care home in northern France.

Welcome to the ‘happiness bubble’ where families are reconnecting with elderly loved ones in care homes Location: Bourbourg, France (SOUNDBITE) (French) DIRECTOR OF FONDATION SCHADET VERCOUSTRE RETIREMENT HOME, AUDREY BERNARD, SAYING: "So on one side, there is a sealed room for the residents, which we close off from access to the central bubble.

In the bubble, which is circular, the resident and their family are separated by a wall which is totally transparent.

Each one has their own section." A see-through plastic sheet is used to allow families to see each other and finally touch again (SOUNDBITE) (French) DIRECTOR OF FONDATION SCHADET VERCOUSTRE RETIREMENT HOME, AUDREY BERNARD, SAYING: "Touch, notably with people who have Alzheimer's, is important.

Sometimes they can no longer talk, the only thing they can do is touch, that's the only response you have, friction between the hands and so on.

This bubble is a bit magical because it allows you to have the impression that you're touching each other, given that the central wall is totally flexible, when residents put their hands out and the families do too, you really have the sensation that you're touching through the wall."