How to keep in contact long-distance with Mother who has dementia and is essentially deaf?

Not sure where to ask this question, but since my MIL has dementia, I figured this might be the proper site. My husband has POA for his mom who is in Assisted Living approx. 7 hours away from us. He calls frequently and she never answers the phone. He had the nurse check last week and her phone was under her blankets with almost no power left. He called the next day and she actually answered (The 1st time in a month!) but hung up because she couldn't hear anything. She has hearing aids, but frequently misplaces them and they only seem to minimally help. Is it asking too much to call the facility and have an aide go into her room to make sure she answers the phone? Are there other ways to keep in contact? We would gladly purchase a laptop or tablet for her so we could Skype, but that would require even more assistance from the staff. I don't want this poor, confused woman to think that she's been abandoned. Any suggestions?