Perspectives of stakeholders on technology use in the care of community-living older adults with dementia:A systematic literature review

Although technology has the potential to promote aging in place, the use of technology remains scarce among community-living older adults with dementia. A reason might be that many stakeholders are involved who all have a different perspective on technology use (i.e., needs, wishes, attitudes, possibilities, and difficulties). We systematically searched the literature in order to provide an overview of perspectives of different stakeholders on technology use among community-living older adults with dementia. After selection, 46 studies were included. We mainly found perspectives of informal caregivers and, to a lesser extent, of persons with dementia and formal caregivers. Perspectives of suppliers of technology were not present. Shared perspectives among persons with dementia and informal and formal caregivers were, among other things, ease of use, stability and flexibility of technology, importance of privacy, and confidentiality. We also found that among older persons, fun and pleasure, in addition to enhancing freedom and independence, facilitates technology use. Informal caregivers' peace of mind and relief of burden also appeared to be important in using technologies. Formal caregivers value the potential of technologies to improve monitoring and communication. Insight in shared, and conflicting perspectives of stakeholders are essential to enhance the use of technolog

A protocol paper on the preservation of identity: understanding the technology adoption patterns of older adults with age-related vision loss (ARVL)

There are a growing number of older adults with age-related vision loss (ARVL) for whom technology holds promise in supporting their engagement in daily activities. Despite the growing presence of technologies intended to support older adults with ARVL, there remains high rates of abandonment. This phenomenon of technology abandonment may be partly explained by the concept of self-image, meaning that older adults with ARVL avoid the use of particular technologies due to an underlying fear that use of such technologies may mark them as objects of pity, ridicule, and/or stigmatization. In response to this, the proposed study aims to understand how the decision-making processes of older adults with ARVL, as it relates to technology adoption, is influenced by the negotiation of identity. The study protocol will justify the need for this critical ethnographic study, unpack the theoretical underpinnings of this work, detail the sampling/recruitment strategy, describe the methods which included a home tour, go-along, and semi-structured in-depth interview, as well as the collective approach taken to analyze the data. The protocol concludes by examining the ethical tensions associated with this study, including a focus on the methods adopted as well as the ethical challenges inherent when working with an older adult population experiencing vision loss

Wisdom at Work: The Importance of the Older and Experienced Nurse in the Workplace

Focuses on promising strategies and opportunities for retaining experienced nurses, one of many approaches the authors recommend to alleviate the current nurse shortage crisis

Increasing the Capacity of Primary Care Through Enabling Technology.

Primary care is the foundation of effective and high-quality health care. The role of primary care clinicians has expanded to encompass coordination of care across multiple providers and management of more patients with complex conditions. Enabling technology has the potential to expand the capacity for primary care clinicians to provide integrated, accessible care that channels expertise to the patient and brings specialty consultations into the primary care clinic. Furthermore, technology offers opportunities to engage patients in advancing their health through improved communication and enhanced self-management of chronic conditions. This paper describes enabling technologies in four domains (the body, the home, the community, and the primary care clinic) that can support the critical role primary care clinicians play in the health care system. It also identifies challenges to incorporating these technologies into primary care clinics, care processes, and workflow

The Summit on Creativity and Aging in America

This report looks at how the federal government can leverage the arts to foster healthy aging and inclusive design for this growing population. This white paper features recommendations from the May 2015 Summit on Creativity and Aging in America, a convening of more than 70 experts hosted by the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Center for Creative Aging. The paper highlights recommendations on healthy aging, lifelong learning in the arts, and age-friendly community design. The summit was a precursor to the 2015 White House Conference on Aging, which addressed four major issues: retirement security, long-term services and supports, healthy aging, and elder abuse

The employer's perspective on retirement

In this chapter we discuss the literature with respect to the role of employers in retirement processes of older workers and provide suggestions for future research. In the first part of this chapter we will review existing theoretical insights regarding the employers’ actions and attitudes toward older workers and retirement. In the next section we will discuss empirical findings with regard to age related stereotypes in the workplace and age norms with respect to retirement and present some results form an international comparative employer study. We conclude with a section on the management of retirement processes, focussing on the exit and hiring of older workers.

The impact of information and communication technology on family carers of older people and professionals in Sweden

Government policy in Sweden, as in other developed countries, pays increasing attention as to how best to support the family carers of older people. New and innovative means of support, such as information and communication technology, are emerging. This paper explores the perceived benefits of, and barriers to, information technology as a means of supporting family carers of older people. Following a brief overview of the care-giving literature, with particular reference to the Swedish context, interview and questionnaire data collected from 34 families who took part in the Swedish ACTION project are used to explore the role of user-friendly information and communication technology to inform and enable family carers of older people to exercise choice, to care more effectively and to work in partnership with professionals. Interview data from two groups of professionals that utilised ACTION are also examined to throw light on its potential benefits for both carers and professionals. Consideration is given to the barriers to using information technology, and to identifying those carers most likely to benefit. Areas for further development are the need for practitioners' education and a wider range of programmes to address carers' diverse needs. Clearly, lessons learned from the Swedish project have wider relevance, given that new forms of support are being developed in most technically advanced countries

Exploring psychosocial interventions for people with dementia that enhance personhood and relate to legacy- an integrative review

Background: Epidemiological predictions suggest that dementia will continue to rise and that this will have social and economic ramifications. Effective interventions, beyond pharmacological management are needed. Psychosocial interventions have largely been investigated in relation to carers of people with dementia, or with regards to their ability to manage dementia symptoms, improve cognition, and reduce challenging behaviour. However, since dementia is a life-limiting illness and people with dementia are at risk of having their personhood compromised, psychosocial interventions should seek to enhance personhood, and offer the potential for the person to leave a legacy. Methods: An integrative review was carried out to identify, assess, appraise and synthesise studies featuring interventions, which relate to both personhood and legacy. Search strategies were developed in key databases: MEDLINE; PsycINFO; Embase; Joanna Briggs Institute; CINAHL; Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews; ASSIA. Grey literature was also identified through free-text searches. Results: Thirty six articles were included in the final review, these were tabulated and were assessed based on how the intervention related to personhood and legacy. Classification resulted in three themes being identified: Offering aspects of legacy; Acknowledging the person behind the patient; Facilitating meaningful engagement. Generally, personhood aspects of interventions were well reported, but further research is required to explore legacy potential of psychosocial interventions for people with dementia. Conclusion: The integrative review provides an overview and exploration of an under-researched area, and provides directions for future research, which will help expand the evidence base and ultimately help improve patient care for people with dementia and their families

The elderly and the digital inclusion: A brief reference to the initiatives of the European union and Portugal

Background: The world and Europe, in particular, are aging very fast, and in the same vein, digitization is moving very quickly into citizens’ routines. Given the fact that the elderly are the largest group of citizens who are info-excluded, this reality is worrying because it will quickly make them socially excluded. This article briefly presents the main initiatives of the European Union and Portugal to promote greater and faster digital inclusion of the elderly people. In the final section, there is a critical reflection on technology acceptance Model, the concept of universal design and usability in order to propose clues and strategies that can and/or may facilitate the use and access of technologies and digital resources by the elderly.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Addressing the Health Needs of an Aging America: New Opportunities for Evidence-Based Policy Solutions

This report systematically maps research findings to policy proposals intended to improve the health of the elderly. The study identified promising evidence-based policies, like those supporting prevention and care coordination, as well as areas where the research evidence is strong but policy activity is low, such as patient self-management and palliative care. Future work of the Stern Center will focus on these topics as well as long-term care financing, the health care workforce, and the role of family caregivers