Blake Ellis/The Independent

He can dance. He can play games. He’s the newest “resident” at Lambton Meadowview Villa.

A robot by the name of Pepper has been introduced into the recreational programming at the long-term-care home and he’s pretty unique in Ontario’s long-term-care homes. The home sought out provincial funding after hearing about Pepper in nearby Michigan.

“We have been programming him for awhile, but we kind of just started in the last month or so with interactions,” said Lambton Meadowview Administrator Jennifer Beaubien.

Since Pepper is new, he has only been introduced to a handful of residents. The goal is to introduce him at a group event in the future, said Beaubien. Pepper lead activities on a one-on-one basis with residents.

“We have had some fun,” said 92 year-old Kai Sorensen, who has been a resident of Lambton Meadowview Villa for the past two-and-a- half months. Sorensen played a game of Tic Tac Toe with Pepper as well as danced with the robot and created a message that could be sent to love one, to show off Pepper’s capabilities.

Lambton Meadowview Villa staff hope in the future to use Pepper to engage with people with dementia as the University of Minnesota has already been doing, said Beaubien.

The robots can be programmed to have memories of home or childhood photos in their interactions with people with dementia. Pepper can be tailored for any resident at Lambton Meadowview Villa.

Pepper doesn’t like noisy environments and it is being tested out in different rooms and spaces to see where it works best.

“He is quite a character really,” said Beaubien. “If he tells a joke, he will start laughing afterwards.”
Pepper does not have artificial intelligence. “I have access to the software behind Pepper and I use my knowledge to what is effective recreational engagement,” said Recreation and Leisure Supervisor Lauren Fitzgerald.

The robot could be very busy because about 87 per cent of the people at the Petrolia long-term-care home have some form of dementia, said Beaubien

Pepper will be used purely as a recreational engagement tool, said Beaubien. The robot has been introduced to a number of people and, in some cases, some don’t like interacting with the robot, said Fitzgerald. But she stressed Pepper would never be used in place of human connection.