TECHNOLOGY originally designed for athletes, office workers and millennials to feel safe at night in New York is paving the way to make life easier for older people living independently.
And with more tech-savvy baby boomers embracing smart devices, one of the country’s leading aged care providers predicts an explosion in seniors using smart technology in the next five years.
Feros Care tech guru Andrew Bacon said the aged care industry “needs to evolve fast” to meet this demand. The key is adapting current technologies to meet seniors’ needs.
“While currently our average client is aged 75 and over – with only about 8 per cent of those people owning a smart phone – almost a third of our clients aged between 70 and 75 do have a smart phone and are extremely involved in Facebook and messaging with their grandchildren,” Mr Bacon said.
“These people and baby boomers are more engaged with technology and we think mobile personal emergency response solutions will dramatically rise and see the evolution of smart technology rapidly increasing in the next five years.”
Mr Bacon, operations manager of Feros Care’s LifeLink telehealthcare service, was speaking at the launch of the Feros Care Experience Centre in Tweed Heads.
The state-of-the-art technology hub is devoted to the research, design and implementation of digital technologies that deliver smart and emerging technologies for seniors and people with disability.
It features a research laboratory where new technologies are tested and piloted by consumers, as well as a “plug and play” centre where clients and health professionals can look, touch, feel and experience exactly how equipment works.
“It’s exactly like walking into a person’s home, complete with kitchen, dining room, lounge, bedroom and ensuite, and being able to see all the devices in action,” Mr Bacon said.
There is also a “knowledge centre” where face-to-face and online workshops will be held for health and aged care staff.
The site houses Feros Care’s virtual care team, with clinical staff remotely monitoring and supporting high-risk clients with chronic conditions as well as a national warehouse and distribution centre for the Lifelink smart technology service.
“Gone are the days when technology and aged care were at opposite ends of the spectrum,” said Feros Care chief executive Jennene Buckley.
“Today, we can provide so many more options of care by including technology and digital solutions into both residential and home care.”
Ms Buckley was inducted into the Aged Care IT Hall of Fame last year for the role she and Feros Care have played in introducing and promoting technology transformation in the industry.
“We believe technology will play a significant role in the types of new products and services Feros Care will deliver each year,” she said.
“Our new product suites for community care include our virtual senior centre, wearable technologies, senior-friendly tablets, and training and wearable technologies. The list will be growing constantly with our new Experience Centre.”
The centre is based at Tweed Heads, but provides a national presence through state-based service partners, national distribution network and online services.
Mr Bacon said while technology was the way forward, it was “in addition to care” and was “never going to replace one-on-one care”.
Technology adapted to meet the needs of seniors, as featured at the new Feros Care Experience Centre, includes:
- Lumo lift. Originally designed for people sitting and working at computers, the small, lightweight wearable device is designed to improve posture and a promote a healthy back. Lifelink has repurposed this to help prevent falls.
“Once a person has experienced a fall, they have less confidence and tend to look at the ground and watch where their feet are going,” Mr Bacon said. “Wearing a Lumo Lift reminds you to stand tall and look ahead. If you slouch or, in the case of an older person, look at your feet, Lumo will vibrate, making you aware of your posture.”
- Care@Home. This passive emergency response alarm, originally developed on a home security system, provides seamless health monitoring so people can live independently. Sensors and intelligent algorithms learn the client’s daily habits and behaviours and send an alert to loved ones if their daily routine changes. “If, for example, the client normally goes to the toilet eight times a day and this suddenly changes to 14 times in one day, an alert will be sent,” Mr Bacon said.
- Wisewear bracelet. This 18-carat gold distress bangle comes complete with GPS and text messaging. Originally developed as a distress bracelet for young people going out in New York, it has been repurposed for seniors as a discreet, attractive falls protection device that sends an emergency alert in the case of a fall or health scare.
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