Dementia beyond 2025: knowledge and uncertainties

International audienceGiven that there may well be no significant advances in drug development before 2025, prevention of dementia/AD through the management of vascular and lifestyle-related risk factors may be a more realistic goal than treatment. Level of education and cognitive reserve assessment in neuropsychological testing deserve attention, as well as cultural, social and economic aspects of caregiving. Assistive technologies for dementia care remain complex. Serious games are emerging as virtual educational and pleasurable tools, designed for individual and cooperative skill-building. Public policies are likely to pursue improving awareness and understanding of dementia; providing good quality early diagnosis and intervention for all; improving quality of care from diagnosis to the end of life, using clinical and economic endpoints; delivering dementia strategies quicker, with an impact on more people. Dementia should remain presented as a stand-alone concept, distinct from frailty or loss of autonomy. The basic science of sensory impairment and social engagement in people with dementia needs to be developed. E-learning and serious games programmes may enhance public and professional education. Faced with funding shortage, new professional dynamics and economic models may emerge through coordinated, flexible research networks. Psychosocial research could be viewed as an investment in quality of care, rather than an academic achievement in a few centres of excellence. This would help provide a competitive advantage to the best operators. Stemming from care needs, a logical, systems approach to dementia care environment through organizational, architectural and psychosocial interventions may be developed, to help reduce symptoms in people with dementia and enhance quality of life. Dementia-friendly environments, culture and domesticity are key factors for such interventions

Industrial product design for elderly people in interior spaces

Thesis (Master)--Izmir Institute of Technology, Industrial Design, Izmir, 2006Includes bibliographical references (leaves:149-156)Text in English, Abstract: Turkish and Englishxiv,165 leavesThroughout the history of mankind, the aging concept has been one of the oldest and most significant concerns of all societies and individuals. In the contemporary world, increasing ageing of the population has globally created phenomena and priorities that affect life styles and world views of all people. Demographic changes show the elderly population is the fastest growing part of the world.s population, particularly in Japan, Europe and the USA. Therefore, populations become older and more disabled and these trends continue in the future. The aging process restricts the many physical and cognitive abilities of the elderly.Besides, most of elderly people continue to live their own households. Present products which for increasing aging population living alone have become inadequate to meet their changing physical, sensory and cognitive requirements during the aging process. For this reason, product design for elderly and its criteria which can be adapted to global needs of people to reach an optimal solution should be considered profoundly. Products which can respond many physical problems of elderly help them to accomplish the activities of daily living in interior spaces and act as a physical and cognitive assistive role in their lives. This study aims to examine the domestic products which are being used by elderly people in interior spaces to make daily living activities more efficient and satisfying for them and reveal the criteria to reach a solution. These products aim to improve the independently living and the quality of life of elderly people and connect them to social life

Amidst technology, environment and human touch. Understanding elderly customers in the bank retail sector

Purpose – Using retail banking as a setting and focusing specifically on elderly customers (i.e. individuals aged 60 or more), this study aims to deepen the current understanding of how the physical context and the need for human interaction influence elderly customers’ attitudes toward self-service technologies (SSTs) and their behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Using face-to-face questionnaires, a sample of 505 elderly bank customers was collected. Data were analyzed using a multi-method approach, combining a moderated mediation analysis with a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. Findings – The findings suggest that a pleasant retail space may result in a positive attitude toward SSTs, which increases their co-creation intention. It also highlights that need for interaction of elderly customers with employees has detrimental effects on their attitude toward SSTs. Research limitations/implications – The current analysis was carried out among Italian elderly banks’ customers. Thus, the results are highly dependent on the context of the analysis. In addition, it does not consider the different degrees of knowledge and experience the elderly may have with technology. Practical implications – This study suggests that providing access and support for using technology may be essential for banks to facilitate SSTs adoption in elderly customers. Originality/value – To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to examine the influence of the physical context on elderly customers’ attitudes toward SSTs and their consequent behavioral intentions. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of the human touch for these particular customers

Has the time come for an older driver vehicle?

The population of the world is growing older. As people grow older they are more likely to experience declines that can make operating a personal automobile more difficult. Once driving abilities begin to decline, older adults are often faced with decreased mobility. Due to the preference for and pervasiveness of the personal automobile for satisfying mobility needs, there is a global necessity to keep older adults driving for as long as they can safely do so. In this report we explore the question: Has the time come for an older driver vehicle? Great gains in safe mobility could be made by designing automobiles that take into account, and help overcome, some of the deficits in abilities common in older people. The report begins by providing a background and rationale for an older driver vehicle, including discussions of relevant trends, age-related declines in functional abilities, and the adverse consequences of decreased mobility. The next section discusses research and issues related to vehicle design and advanced technology with respect to older drivers. The next section explores crashworthiness issues and the unique requirements for older adults. The following section discusses the many issues related to marketing a vehicle that has been designed for older drivers. The report concludes that there is a clear global opportunity to improve the safety, mobility, and quality of life of older adults by designing vehicles and vehicle technologies that help overcome common age-related deficits. The marketing of these vehicles to older consumers, however, will be challenging and will likely require further market research. The development of vehicle design features, new automotive technologies, and crashworthiness systems in the future should be guided by both knowledge of the effects of frailty/fragility of the elderly on crash outcomes, as well as knowledge of common drivingrelated declines in psychomotor, visual, and cognitive abilities. Design strategies that allow for some degree of customization may be particularly beneficial. It is clear that training and education efforts for using new vehicle features will need to be improved.The University of Michigan Sustainable Worldwide Transportationhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/89960/1/102821.pd