Fifty and Furthermore's Blog

Technology and Caregiving

I was delighted to read the following press release from AARP. It stands as confirmation for one of the reasons I started FiftyandFurthermore. I've known for a long time that we Boomers and Pioneers were a lot wiser than we were being given credit for. I saw it in my psychotherapy practice and I saw it in my friends. We didn't need studies to tell us what was happening; we were living it. But others not in our age group have been harder to convince. Thus, I applaud AARP (www.AARP.org) for commissioning and publishing this well-needed research by the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (www.aahsa.org), and I breathe a sigh of relief that I no longer feel so alone. We FiftyandFurthermores may not have been born with technology, but we sure have the smarts to use what will help us. I was especially gratified since my book on caregiving (When The Man You Love Is Ill: Doing Your Best For Your Partner Without Losing Yourself) specifically addresses the benefits of modern technology for caregivers and those who, because of illness, must spend much of their time at home. How encouraging to know that AARP agrees with me and with FiftyandFurthermore readers.

Read the full press release here: Older People Want to Use Technology to Help Them Remain at Home

Excerpts from the press release:

Older adults want to use technology so they can age safely in their home. Family caregivers agree believing technology can ease some of the challenges of caregiving. Concerns such as cost to install and maintain equipment remain barriers for people 65-plus and for caregivers. These are the conclusions of two new reports, one from AARP and the other from the Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST) of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA).

The AARP Foundation commissioned this report which examined the attitudes of people 65-plus and caregivers towards technology and found that both groups are concerned about costs. The study identified a willingness to try technology like home security services, sensors to detect falls and devices to regulate temperature, lights and appliances. But cost remains a factor with seventy-five percent of caregivers and eighty percent of those 65-plus willing to pay $50.00 or less per month for the service.

"The ground is fertile for the use of caregiving technology to flourish," said Elinor Ginzler, AARP Sr. Vice President for Livable Communities. "Almost nine in ten older Americans want to be able to stay in their own homes and they are willing to use technology that can help them do that. Cost, however, is the elephant in the room-how to pay remains a big obstacle."

There is also a conflicting perspective between caregivers and those likely to need care. People 65-plus report a high willingness to use technology, but more than eight in ten caregivers believe they would have some, or a great deal of difficulty convincing those they care for to adopt technology. Large majorities of both caregivers and potential care recipients believe technology would make them feel safer, give them more personal peace of mind and provide peace of mind for families and friends.

The CAST study lays out the categories of technologies that exist to ease the burden of caregiving for informal and paid caregivers. These include:

* Sensors can detect and notify a caregiver if a person being cared for does not get out of his chair or turn off the stove.

* Health technologies can monitor blood pressure, respiration and other conditions in real time while the person is at home, reducing the need for doctor's visits and notifying caregivers immediately of significant changes.

* Medication dispensers provide the appropriate medicines at the appropriate time and remind a person being cared for to take them.

* Computer games provide social networking, brain stimulation and even monitoring of cognitive abilities through the use of diagnostic games.

The study also includes interviews with expert researchers, who concluded that factors ranging from interconnectivity between different systems to usability, affordability and the availability of technical support and training will determine how widespread aging services technologies can become.

"Our study shows that we can create a network of technology-driven services to help elders stay at home and achieve better outcomes," said Majd Alwan, PhD, director of CAST. "Technology can help create a new paradigm for caring for elders, and consumers should be as aware of these options as they are aware of their cell phone plans or cable television offerings."

Research commissioned and funded by Blue Shield of California Foundation to the AARP Foundation and the Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST) of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging.

For more information on Healthy @ Home visit: http://www.aarp.org/research/housing-mobility/indliving/healthy_home.html.

For more information on the CAST study visit: www.agingtech.org.

CAREGIVERS: LEARNING FROM OTHER CULTURES

An average life expectancy close to 80 years has left many families in cities such as
Perugia, Italy struggling with how to care for aging parents while keeping up with two careers. Wary of retirement homes, Italians have embraced foreign help such Ukrainians with gusto as an answer to a shortage of in-home caregivers, a professional role snubbed by many. These Italians have embraced Ukrainian immigrants as an answer to a shortage of in-home caregivers. http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0315/p01s03-woeu.html?s=hns

The same distaste for retirement homes is exploding in the United Sates. More and more families want to tend to their ill at home. And the number of those who are ill or dying who say they want to remain at home is increasing. We need political, organizational and personal help and incentives to enable this to happen. Although in today’s world, families are far flung, when it comes to illness and times of distress, many families still want to bond and take care of their own. The only problem is they don’t have the means, time and we lack systems to help them.

As our population ages, we must make provisions for similar kind of help.  The government needs to provide incentives to help caregivers and those in need of care receive better benefits so that illness does not break the hearts and the bank accounts of those involved. Read When The Man You Love Is Ill for examples of some alternative ways to think about caregiving and also for a list of organizations that are available to help you. This is a serious matter, poised on the verge of becoming more serious with each future year. Consideration of alternatives and actions must start now. Share you  ideas with me. Together we can implement change.