06/19/2020
Smart Home Tech for Elderly
By 2030, 23% of Canada’s population will be over the age of 65. While senior housing and care home have always been an option for our senior citizens, a growing concept of “Ageing in Place”(the decision to live independently) has recently gained popularity. Ageing in place provides healthy elderly a familiar setting and neighborhood for them to continuously live in, while maintaining their existing social circle, but more importantly, keeping that sense of belongings one always needs.
Unlike the previous generations, these baby boomers are likely more financially stable, and well-verse in current technology. We should therefore be exploring the different options for the elderly in our homes. Smart home technology can benefit elderly in multiple categories including safety, social engagement, leisure, physical activity, nutrition and health and personal hygiene and care.
Safety
This is the utmost importance when seniors live alone. The category of safety would be concerned with detecting and removing hazards. Although it is one of the more obvious reasons, our biggest concern for our loved ones will always be their safety.
There is now technology that can sense when someone has fallen as well as unidentified personnel. Ultrasonic sensors can now sense when someone has fallen and there are also doorbell cameras now that can alert you if there is an unknown person at the door. Especially for users who are prone to wandering, the family could set up geo-fencing or GPS enabled “safe zones” to notify them if the user wanders out of that safe zone to easily locate them. There are now also medical alert systems which are essentially portable help buttons. Some are now made to wear around the neck which can allow the user to press and call for help whenever they need.
Nutrition and Health
This category is about the user’s state of health and oftentimes elderly can’t remember things and can forget to take medicine or even eat. A simple solution for this could be setting reminders for them.
Physical Activity
Physical activity for elderly can be often forgotten but daily exercises are pertinent to good health. It should be encouraged for elderly to engage in more active activities. Setting a reminder for them to exercise could be beneficial. There are also many videos online that could teach them how to do simple daily exercises.
Personal Hygiene and Care
There is now technology that can assist the user in their daily routines as well as help them navigate. This includes instruction on household appliances, oral hygiene, cleaning etc. If the user also forgets to turn off lighting, or even the stove, there are also ways to automate your lighting and have an automatic stove shut off.
Social Engagement
Smart home technology can help users combat social isolation. For example, you can ask a smart home assistant to call someone for you. The elderly can also interact with the smart home assistant. Many people over the age of 65 are already on social media. This allows them to reconnect and maintain relationships as they may not be able to leave the house as often as they used to. Using a smart home assistant can also allow them to keep in contact with family members such as children, grandchildren or siblings.
Leisure
Smart home assistants can help turn on the TV or radio for the user. They can also assist with activities like online games and entertainment in general.
Applications That Can be Beneficial for Elders
• GPS
• Rideshare apps (Uber, Lyft)
• Medication/Meal reminders
• Food/grocery delivery apps
Homes are quite often retrofitted, adjusting for the elderly’s changing living pattern, these refurbishment includes, enlarging bathroom, widening corridors, eliminating access barriers, or simply as changing bathroom fittings, adding handrail or repainting surfaces for degrading eye-sight. As ageing in place is becoming more prevalent in our society, we can now begin to think about how these simple but effective technology can be fully integrated into your home refurbishment.
