After two years of testing this material with attendees at local Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes, I have prepared this 6 part series on Digital Health Technologies supporting Aging In Place. Your reviews and comments will be welcomed. Thank you.
Digital Health Technologies Supporting Aging In
Place
1. An
Overview of Digital Health Technologies
Digital health technologies have the
potential to transform health and wellness for aging clients, and to provide
assurances for their family members. Broadly speaking, consumers of
these emerging technologies need context, a framework of analysis, and a sense
of the dynamic marketplace for such services. Learn
what the promoters and the critics of these technologies have to offer. Key ethical issues will be discussed,
and you will discover a device certification program, and its distinctive logo.
The overall goal of the presentation is to help you make informed decisions on the
cost, utility and quality of digital health technologies
2. Care Robots: Managing
Care and Providing Companionship
Care
robots have the potential to increase the productivity of caregivers, provide
emotional support and companionship, and to serve as effective accountability
partners in such matters as medication adherence and physical exercise.
Experiments with robotic pets in senior settings such as memory care units are
increasing. In this class, you will learn to identify the types of robots
currently available and to understand what the promoters and the critics have
to say about these devices. You will have hands-on experience with robot pets
and a robot companion called Vector. The overall objective is to ensure that
you have the tools and insights to be an informed consumer of care robots.
3. Virtual and Augmented Reality's Potential
for Health and Wellness
The
immersive experience of virtual reality (VR) is being used both for diversion
therapy as well as a growing number of clinical applications, like pain
management. Augmented Reality (AR) allows users to view digital information and
images as an overlay to the real world. Increasingly, AR is being used to provide
surgeons with an array of clinical information while operating, and it is
playing an important role in medical education. We will examine use cases for
both VR and AR and identify leading VR and AR vendors and their respective
products. Attendees will experiment with VR viewers, including the Oculus Go by
Facebook
4. Voice-activated Devices: Improving Care Coordination and Patient
Engagement
Voice
assistants have achieved popular adoption with over 50 million consumers in the
U.S and an estimated 100 million users worldwide by the end of 2018. The
devices are expected to play a major role in care coordination and patient
education. Like any new device, they have strengths and limitations, which
we'll explore. While Amazon and Google are current market leaders, we'll
identify other tech companies coming into the market, especially with smart
display devices. Use cases for voice in clinical trials and in senior settings
will be identified. The Amazon Echo Show and the Lenovo Smart Display (With
Google Assistant) will be available for student inspection and interaction.
5. Smart Homes and the
Internet of Health Things
Smart homes, featuring wireless security,
safety and utility devices, are entering
the mainstream, after years of experimentation at leading academic institutions. For
example, Lennar, a major home builder, is now marketing a Wi-Fi Certified™
Smart Home featuring Amazon Alexa. Internet of Health Things are devices/wearables which track vitals,
monitor medication use, and issue fall warnings. Apple’s Smart Watch (Series 4)
is a prominent example of such devices. Discover the strengths and weaknesses
of both technologies, the interplay between each, and future projections.
6. Telehealth/Virtual
Care
Telehealth has potential
to make care available to underserved areas, extend the reach of specialty
medical and psychiatric care, and to reduce care and transportation costs.
Nearly all US health systems are planning to offer telehealth options to their
constituents. We will discuss factors which will promote telehealth growth as
well as factors impeding such expansion. Special attention will be paid to
virtual physician visits, which are becoming more available to healthcare
consumers. Case studies of telehealth market leaders like the Veterans
Administration and Avera Health E-Care will be considered. We’ll examine what
the skeptics of telemedicine have to say as well. Lastly, we will showcase the
new ClearHealth Quality Institute Telemedicine Accreditation Program sponsored
by the American Telemedicine Association.
February 2019
