How Technology Improves Senior Care
Solutions such as mobile devices and EHRs can improve care delivery and outcomes for older patients.
The healthcare industry faces a massive challenge: The population of U.S. residents over 65 is growing rapidly. The U.S. Census Bureau notes that by the year 2030, all baby boomers will be older than 65. At that point, one out of every five U.S. residents will be of retirement age. And by 2035, for the first time in American history, senior citizens are projected to outnumber children under the age of 18. This trend is putting a huge strain on healthcare providers as they deal with a growing number of older adults with health problems (including issues such as hearing loss, cognitive decline, balance issues, vision impairment and depression).
Technology holds the promise of helping to address the situation. Many practical, present-day IT solutions have the power to dramatically improve upon standard practices. And, because many older Americans often live in the same place where they receive medical care (whether that is at home, an assisted living facility or a nursing unit), senior care may present a unique opportunity for broader deployment of home-based digital health solutions.
The list of existing and emerging technologies that can help to maintain and improve the health and care of seniors includes the following:
Mobile applications: Smartphones and tablets, along with mobile applications, can not only help frontline senior care workers to access data instantly, but can also help seniors themselves to track and monitor their own health metrics. For example, Breezie, a tablet-based platform built on Samsung frameworks, enables senior care providers to deliver care and services through a personalized tablet interface. The platform integrates telehealth, medical alerts and personalized health information, along with games that promote mental agility. Additionally, Breezie has social components (such as an address book, email and video calling) to help prevent isolation, and the platform even facilitates the ordering of services such as transportation, grocery delivery or care visits. Fifty-nine percent of seniors who use the platform (PDF) say that Breezie helps them to feel less isolated, and the percentage of users who said they had an overall sense of well-being more than doubled (from 39 percent to 83 percent) after three months of using the solution.
EHR and EMR systems: Healthcare organizations have raced to implement electronic health record (EHR) and electronic medical record (EMR) systems in recent years, with 86 percent of office-based physicians implementing an EMR or EHR system by 2017. EMR systems support digital versions of clinical paper charts, containing notes and information primarily used for diagnosis and treatment. Meanwhile, EHR systems go beyond standard clinical data to provide a broader view of patient care, and the records can follow patients from doctor to doctor and facility to facility. Both types of systems help to minimize errors, enable better coordination between care providers and speed up care delivery.
Data analytics: Predictive analytics has the potential to make senior care far more proactive — and, in some cases, even automated. By monitoring and tracking metrics that serve as leading indicators of serious medical events, providers can intervene before a crisis hits. For instance, strokes are often preceded by a period of slowed activity. If senior care providers were able to remotely and unobtrusively track their patients’ movement (either through wearable devices or smart home sensors), they might be able to spot changes in activity and act on these warning signs before a patient suffers a stroke. In addition to improving health outcomes for seniors, such a solution could save thousands of dollars in healthcare costs each time it prevented a serious medical event.
Monitoring: Like people of all ages, many seniors are already using consumer market health trackers, including devices such as Fitbit and Apple Watch. These wearable devices can track metrics such as activity, blood pressure, heart rate and sleep, providing a wealth of information that can inform care delivery. Beyond their potential for delivering health and activity data to care providers, wearable devices can be a source of engagement and motivation for seniors. Just as working-age people who wear fitness trackers commonly set daily activity goals, wearables may motivate seniors to hit their “10,000 steps” or other health-related objectives, helping to improve their overall health and potentially decreasing their risk of chronic disease. Some wearables even allow users to connect with friends through apps, providing an added social component.
Telehealth: Telehealth solutions, which connect patients and clinicians via secure video links, are making inroads throughout the healthcare industry. In one common use case, patients in rural areas with a shortage of specialists use telehealth to connect with providers. While these patients often travel to a local healthcare facility for their virtual appointments, telehealth solutions can also connect providers to patients in their homes — an option preferred by many seniors due to its speed and simplicity. U.S. News & World Report compares home telehealth visits to the physician house calls of yesteryear. The publication suggests that telehealth might be able to reduce hospital readmission rates, particularly for seniors living in nursing homes or other long-term care facilities. While telehealth acceptance is growing, policies around reimbursement for providers still vary from state to state.
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services finalized a rule in April 2019 that authorized healthcare plans through Medicare Advantage to dramatically broaden telehealth services to seniors. Under the new rule, seniors can use telehealth services in their own homes instead of having to visit a healthcare facility, making access to care at home a reality for all Medicare patients
Smart living spaces: In both assisted living facilities and seniors’ own homes, smart home technologies can help to create spaces that are safer for seniors, easier for them to navigate and capable of monitoring environmental metrics. Through the use of sensors, wireless connectivity and data tracking platforms, smart home technologies can gather data on home environment variables such as illumination level, temperature, gas leakage, oxygen level and the activity or location of occupants.
67%
The percentage of Americans age 65 and older who use the internet today, up from just 14 percent in the year 2000
Source: Pew Research Center, “Tech Adoption Climbs Among Older Adults,” May 17, 2017
The healthcare industry faces a massive challenge: The population of U.S. residents over 65 is growing rapidly. The U.S. Census Bureau notes that by the year 2030, all baby boomers will be older than 65. At that point, one out of every five U.S. residents will be of retirement age. And by 2035, for the first time in American history, senior citizens are projected to outnumber children under the age of 18. This trend is putting a huge strain on healthcare providers as they deal with a growing number of older adults with health problems (including issues such as hearing loss, cognitive decline, balance issues, vision impairment and depression).
Technology holds the promise of helping to address the situation. Many practical, present-day IT solutions have the power to dramatically improve upon standard practices. And, because many older Americans often live in the same place where they receive medical care (whether that is at home, an assisted living facility or a nursing unit), senior care may present a unique opportunity for broader deployment of home-based digital health solutions.
The list of existing and emerging technologies that can help to maintain and improve the health and care of seniors includes the following:
Mobile applications: Smartphones and tablets, along with mobile applications, can not only help frontline senior care workers to access data instantly, but can also help seniors themselves to track and monitor their own health metrics. For example, Breezie, a tablet-based platform built on Samsung frameworks, enables senior care providers to deliver care and services through a personalized tablet interface. The platform integrates telehealth, medical alerts and personalized health information, along with games that promote mental agility. Additionally, Breezie has social components (such as an address book, email and video calling) to help prevent isolation, and the platform even facilitates the ordering of services such as transportation, grocery delivery or care visits. Fifty-nine percent of seniors who use the platform (PDF) say that Breezie helps them to feel less isolated, and the percentage of users who said they had an overall sense of well-being more than doubled (from 39 percent to 83 percent) after three months of using the solution.
EHR and EMR systems: Healthcare organizations have raced to implement electronic health record (EHR) and electronic medical record (EMR) systems in recent years, with 86 percent of office-based physicians implementing an EMR or EHR system by 2017. EMR systems support digital versions of clinical paper charts, containing notes and information primarily used for diagnosis and treatment. Meanwhile, EHR systems go beyond standard clinical data to provide a broader view of patient care, and the records can follow patients from doctor to doctor and facility to facility. Both types of systems help to minimize errors, enable better coordination between care providers and speed up care delivery.
Data analytics: Predictive analytics has the potential to make senior care far more proactive — and, in some cases, even automated. By monitoring and tracking metrics that serve as leading indicators of serious medical events, providers can intervene before a crisis hits. For instance, strokes are often preceded by a period of slowed activity. If senior care providers were able to remotely and unobtrusively track their patients’ movement (either through wearable devices or smart home sensors), they might be able to spot changes in activity and act on these warning signs before a patient suffers a stroke. In addition to improving health outcomes for seniors, such a solution could save thousands of dollars in healthcare costs each time it prevented a serious medical event.
Monitoring: Like people of all ages, many seniors are already using consumer market health trackers, including devices such as Fitbit and Apple Watch. These wearable devices can track metrics such as activity, blood pressure, heart rate and sleep, providing a wealth of information that can inform care delivery. Beyond their potential for delivering health and activity data to care providers, wearable devices can be a source of engagement and motivation for seniors. Just as working-age people who wear fitness trackers commonly set daily activity goals, wearables may motivate seniors to hit their “10,000 steps” or other health-related objectives, helping to improve their overall health and potentially decreasing their risk of chronic disease. Some wearables even allow users to connect with friends through apps, providing an added social component.
Telehealth: Telehealth solutions, which connect patients and clinicians via secure video links, are making inroads throughout the healthcare industry. In one common use case, patients in rural areas with a shortage of specialists use telehealth to connect with providers. While these patients often travel to a local healthcare facility for their virtual appointments, telehealth solutions can also connect providers to patients in their homes — an option preferred by many seniors due to its speed and simplicity. U.S. News & World Report compares home telehealth visits to the physician house calls of yesteryear. The publication suggests that telehealth might be able to reduce hospital readmission rates, particularly for seniors living in nursing homes or other long-term care facilities. While telehealth acceptance is growing, policies around reimbursement for providers still vary from state to state.
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services finalized a rule in April 2019 that authorized healthcare plans through Medicare Advantage to dramatically broaden telehealth services to seniors. Under the new rule, seniors can use telehealth services in their own homes instead of having to visit a healthcare facility, making access to care at home a reality for all Medicare patients
Smart living spaces: In both assisted living facilities and seniors’ own homes, smart home technologies can help to create spaces that are safer for seniors, easier for them to navigate and capable of monitoring environmental metrics. Through the use of sensors, wireless connectivity and data tracking platforms, smart home technologies can gather data on home environment variables such as illumination level, temperature, gas leakage, oxygen level and the activity or location of occupants.
To learn more about how technology can help overcome the challenges to senior care, read the CDW white paper “Meeting the Healthcare Challenges of an Aging Population Through IT.”
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