What I'd do is set up a simple website that uses a little JavaScript to rewrite the date and time into the page and periodically refresh an image under/next to it. Size the image to fit the remaining free space of however you set up the iPad, and then you can stick anything you want there (pictures/reminder text/whatever) with your favorite image editor. Upload a new image to the server when you want to change the note. The idea with an image is that it's just really easy to do and keeps the amount of effort to redo layout to a minimum -- just drag stuff around in your image editor and you'll know it'll all fit as expected as long as you don't change the resolution (instead of needing to muck around with CSS and maybe breaking something if you can't see the device to check that it displays correctly).

There's a couple issues to watch out for -- e.g. what happens if the internet connection/server goes down, screen burn-in, keeping the browser from being closed/switched to another page, keeping it powered, etc. that might or might not matter depending on your particular circumstances. If you need to fix all that for your circumstances, it might be more trouble than just buying something purpose built... but getting a first pass DIY version working is trivial if you're comfortable hosting a website.

Edit: If some sample code that you can use as a starting point would be helpful, let me know.

I don't know of anything built for that purpose but you could use home assistant dashboards to pull it off pretty easily if you already have an instance set up.

The easiest solution would be to get a digital picture frame that you could access remotely. You might also look into smart TVs that have an API for messages.

Really, you could make one pretty easily with a raspberry pi or arduino.

Raspberry pi/small NUC with a screen, in a digital kiosk mode. Just load a static html file with some js to update the clock. No keyboard, no touch input, no way to break it. Connect to it via ssh over tailscale or wireguard VPN to update the HTML with the notes you'd like to display. This way if internet goes down, the clock still works and whatever was displayed wrt messages stays displayed, and you don't have to worry about the increased overhead of home assistant changes or updates breaking things. It will remain consistent since it's just HTML and js. If you want less technical family members to be able to update the display...idk, seems like a headache.

Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I've seen in this thread:

[Thread #513 for this sub, first seen 14th Feb 2024, 21:35] [FAQ] [Full list] [Contact] [Source code]

Not the advice you're looking for but I wouldn't do this.. I have a lot of experience with servers and software development and I wouldn't do it. The amount of effort to make and support a robust system like this is bigger than running a Jellyfin server for friends.

The client needs to be super user friendly and robust. It should work even when the server is unavailable. And you'll need to be on the hook for support. The server would need high availability as well for people adding reminders and schedules. Those are expensive requirements both in terms of money and time. Redundancy isn't cheap.

If these things aren't true the users won't trust the system and/or won't use it. Or a dementia patient could become confused. Maybe they skip medication or double-take it because a reminder wasn't shown? Think through your failure modes carefully.

I'm going to just advise you to consider the nature here and if you really want to self host. Unless you really think you've put enough effort in to make sure your running HA and are prepared to support.

Consider when you may need this most, in an emergency where you ain't going to be troubleshooting with a family members health on the line.

IMO, I have zero interest in that level of responsibility.

Have you looked up raspberry pi magic mirror projects?

You don’t have to use a a mirror, but just a pi and an old monitor mounted on the wall would probably accomplish everything you need.

Any reason to have it be self hosted, or really Internet connected? I can think of a few reasons, but I'm curious your use case.

I know they make $15-20 standalone units that are just what you're looking for, but not Internet connected at all.