New Technologies for People Aging with a Disability

BCIT– Technology and Product Evaluation Group Dr. Tong Louie Living Lab

Today’s presentation Outline BCIT study aimed at evaluating end user perspectives of Vcare Residential Gateway Discussion of design considerations needed so technology could benefit PWD as they age

Background Life expectancy of people with disabilities (PWD) has increased faster than general population 1 Problems associated with aging occur years earlier 1 PWD face secondary problems associated with disability 1-Functional changes affecting people aging with disabilities – Lilli Thompson;From book “Aging with a Disability-What the Clinician Needs to Know” edited by Bryan J. Kemp, Ph.D., and Laura Mosqueda, M.D., 2004 p. 328

Issues “Premature aging” a threat to independence, quality of life health related challenges access and transport to med specialists keeping complex medication information in order home access home security limited financial resources aging family caregivers Often need to provide supports earlier than expected

Technology Managing aging population and chronic disease are priorities New technologies are being developed to help maintain independence Technology could have great impact on PWD, but needs are not always considered

Vcare Residential Gateway

Evaluation Methodology Participants N=8; 65+, living with chronic illness Tasks included: –consulting with remote nurse –collecting health monitoring data –viewing stored data -controlling lights and temperature

Results Participants liked the technology, liked the social interaction Easy to use, liked fingertip control Liked that it is an all inclusive, fairly compact system All felt confident using it and felt they would be comfortable using it independently in their home All but one felt it would allow them to live independently in their home longer “Simple to understand for ordinary people”

Results (cont’d) Key benefits: –sense of security –can monitor health effectively from home –all health information is accessible in one place –improve quality of care –potential for saving time/ money in the medical system –increased independence “If you’re in trouble you can get someone on the other end very quickly. … the security would keep you calm.” “It’s like you’re part of the team”

Use for PWD as they age?

What are the issues? Mobility / hand function limitation Blind/ vision impaired Deaf/ hard of hearing Other??

Potential barriers Mobility/ hand function limitation Tablet touch screen Wrist clinic: donning / doffing device, accessing buttons Standing on scale, pushing button on front Vision impairment/ blind Tablet touch screen Remote consult Data view Wrist Clinic: small screen, readout, instructions, accessing buttons Scale: front button, reading numbers Hearing impaired/ deaf Remote consult Auditory feedback on wrist clinic

Conclusions Technology has potential to provide independence improve functionality, quality of life save money in the healthcare system Must get a better understanding of needs of people aging with disabilities Require need studies AND advocacy to ensure technology is designed to benefit all

The researchers would like to acknowledge NRC-IRAP for their financial contribution and support of this project. Questions? Thank you for listening! Johanne Mattie BCIT Technology and Product Evaluation Group