Medical and Para-Medical Personnel’ Perspectives on Home Health Care Technology

User-based research is strongly recommended in design for older adults. The aim of this paper is to focus the attention on the poorly explored role of medical and para-medical personnel’s perspective on home health care technologies using data that have been gained during the “Active Ageing At Home” (AA@H) project. A focus group was organized at the National Institute of Health & Science on Ageing (INRCA) in Italy. Results demonstrate that several challenges deserve a stronger effort by the whole research sector on ageing and technology: (1) a leading role of the participatory design process; (2) the assessment of the added value of health technologies through robust methods; (3) the definition of an unique identity and well established practices among disciplines; (4) the creation of favorable prerequisites and conditions to the technology uptake

Eldertainment or functional necessity? How virtual agents affect the home lives of people with dementia using the Quality of Life (QOL-AD) scale

A large literature evaluates how virtual agents impact the lives of people with dementia using perceptions of technol- ogy. We assess how a home virtual agent from “Living Well with Anne” impacts the quality of life of elderly with de- mentia rather than only their perceptions of the technology. Assessing impact on life alongside technology perception is pertinent given the importance of a person’s perceived qual- ity of daily home life and that positive technology perception does not always lead to actual use. We propose an approach to evaluate assistive technology for elderly people with de- mentia by assessing impact on life using semi-structured interviews and the QOL-AD scale. A preliminary proof-of- concept study tests whether perceptions of a virtual agent, actual use of the agent and participants’ quality of life are related, and whether a virtual agent improves quality of life

A Qualitative Study toward Technologies for Active and Healthy Aging: A Thematic Analysis of Perspectives among Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary End Users

It is expected that, by 2050, people aged over 60 in 65 nations will constitute 30% of the total population. Healthy aging is at the top of the world political agenda as a possible means for hindering the collapse of care systems. How can ICT/sensing technology meet older people’s needs for active and healthy aging? This qualitative study carried out in Italy and Romania in 2020 involved 30 participants: older adults, caregivers, and stakeholders. Based on a user-centered design approach, this study aimed to understand which requirements of ICT/sensing technologies could match people’s needs of active and healthy aging. Findings highlighted that ICT/sensing technology needs to focus on six major themes: (1) learnability, (2) security, (3) independence, empowerment, and coaching values, (4) social isolation, (5) impact of habit, culture, and education variables, and (6) personalized solutions. These themes are consistent with the Active Aging framework and the factors that influence perceived usefulness and potential benefits among older adults. Consequently, this study shows how well-known, but still unresolved, issues affect the field of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to promote active and healthy aging. This suggests that the reinforcement of the public health system, especially considering the pandemic effect, requires a concrete and formidable effort from an interdisciplinary research network

A Technological Approach to Support the Care Process of Older in Residential Facilities

Faced with an increasing number of elderly housed in residential facilities, there is a request for greater transparency regarding the state of health of the guests and the level of assistance that these guests are offered. The OPENCARE project described in this article aims to respond to this need to promote communication between residential structures and guest families, by introducing a technological platform able to meet this requirement without the need to increase the workload of the operators. Therefore, this article describes the solution adopted, which are based both on data acquired from sensors and on those entered by the operators through a suitably designed interface

The Human Factor in the Design of Successful Ambient Assisted Living Technologies

The increasing incidence of ageing population in modern societies challenges the ability of families, states and communities to sustain new emerging needs. Assistive devices can help older people to maintain their ability in performing activities of daily living and, therefore, their independence. However, despite the huge public and private investments and efforts in research and development, the so-called silver market has not been able to grow at the expected pace: many barriers stand in the way leading from prototypes to products, especially when the target is an inhomogeneous group, as elderly people, and an explicit understanding of users, their needs, expectations and limitations, is not accounted for during the design process. This Chapter discusses the basic role of the human centric approach in the design of assistive technologies, and, by analyzing the outcomes of previous experiences, provides a set of guidelines that can help transforming a disruptive prototype into a successful product

User Requirements Analysis of an Embodied Conversational Agent for Coaching Older Adults to Choose Active and Healthy Ageing Behaviors during the Transition to Retirement: A Cross-National User Centered Design Study

Background: Retirement is recognized as a factor influencing the ageing process. Today, virtual health coaching systems can play a pivotal role in supporting older adults’ active and healthy ageing. This study wants to answer two research questions: (1) What are the user requirements of a virtual coach (VC) based on an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA) for motivating older adults in transition to retirement to adopt a healthy lifestyle? (2) How could a VC address the active and healthy ageing dimensions, even during COVID-19 times? Methods: Two-wave focus-groups with 60 end-users aged 55 and over and 27 follow-up telephone interviews were carried out in Austria, Italy and the Netherlands in 2019–2020. Qualitative data were analysed by way of framework analysis. Results: End-users suggest the VC should motivate older workers and retirees to practice physical activity, maintain social contacts and emotional well-being. The ECA should be reactive, customizable, expressive, sympathetic, not directive nor patronizing, with a pleasant and motivating language. The COVID-19 outbreak increased the users’ need for functions boosting community relationships and promoting emotional well-being. Conclusions: the VC can address the active and healthy ageing paradigm by increasing the chances of doing low-cost healthy activities at any time and in any place

Toward the Integration of Technology-Based Interventions in the Care Pathway for People with Dementia: A Cross-National Study

Background: The integration of technology-based interventions into health and care provision in our aging society is still a challenge especially in the care pathway for people with dementia. Objective: The study aims to: (1) identify which socio-demographic characteristics are independently associated with the use of the embodied conversational agent among subjects with dementia, (2) uncover patient cluster profiles based on these characteristics, and (3) discuss technology-based interventions challenges. Methods: A virtual agent was used for four weeks by 55 persons with dementia living in their home environment. Results: Participants evaluated the agent as easy-to-use and quickly learnable. They felt confident while using the system and expressed the willingness to use it frequently. Moreover, 21/55 of the patients perceived the virtual agent as a friend and assistant who they could feel close to and who would remind them of important things. Conclusions: Technology-based interventions require a significant effort, such as personalized features and patient-centered care pathways, to be effective. Therefore, this study enriches the open discussion on how such virtual agents must be evidence-based related and designed by multidisciplinary teams, following patient-centered care as well as user-centered design approaches

The design adaptation of the virtual assistant anne for moderate dementia patients and their formal caregivers in protected environment tests

Dementia has become a major health problem with an equally important economic impact on our society and enabling patients with dementia and their caregivers to improve their quality of life and dignity is a great challenge. A significant solution to meet the challenge, could be the use of Personal Virtual Assistant (PVA). The aim of this paper is to share the know-how reached in the design and adaptation of the Personal Virtual Assistant “Anne” for moderate dementia patients and their formal caregivers. The paper presents the results of the first iteration of protected environment tests in Italy and Luxembourg