Tears and joy at care home's 'box of emotions'

Wheeled in to what they call the Box of Emotions.

With a glass window down the middle, it's the only way residents at this care home can see their relatives.

For Maria das Merces, it's an unnatural way to see her 90-year-old father at the home in Montijo near Lisbon.

But in the circumstances, both are accepting of the compromise.

"It was very painful. Even though he constantly was watching the news it was very painful. Now, this method, though is not what we want, is a consolation, to see each other in a safe way. That desire to hold him, I don't think I would be able to resist if the glass window wasn't here. That's true."

The air-conditioned box, just outside the nursing home, has been available for less than two weeks.

Its installation is a relief for so many, as a large number of the elderly residents here have dementia and haven't been able to understand why their relatives have stopped coming to see them.

Pedro Santos is the care home president.

"There were people who didn't understand it. Some still don't and think their families abandoned them. Others think they behaved badly and that's why they were deprived of visits. We have several situations. Through this time of confinement we try to explain with more calm and patience what has been going on. But our mission is to protect the health of those who are with us and those who are in our care."

Fatima has already used the box three times to visit her 89-year-old aunt Rosa.

Soon a more normal visit will be allowed.

Portuguese care homes will start opening their doors again on May 18 but social distancing will very much still be required.