PRE2016 3 Groep14

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Group members

• Jeffrey Baijens
• Margot Emke
• Jari van Ewijk
• Marjolijn Kleijer
• Bram Lustenhouwer
• Wouter Wolthuis

Introduction

According to the Global Health and Aging report, by the World Health Organization (WHO), the world population is growing and the age composition of the world population is changing over the years. This causes an increase in the amount of elderly, which can be seen in Figure 1. The increase is mainly caused by the “baby boom” between the years 1946 and 1964 in combination with the rising life expectancy within the older population itself.

FIGUUR TOEVOEGEN!

With the population ageing, there are expected challenges to our health care system. Future shortages of healthcare workers and lack of the diversity of their professions is likely. To be able to manage the increasing demand for healthcare, new models of care will be required. One of the possible solutions is a smart home.

Our goal

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More information

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Even more information

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USE aspects

The USE-aspects of a smart home for elderly are discussed here:

• With a smart home, elderly can live a longer independent life.
• Because of a smart home, care givers can focus their time on tasks which are not performed as well by robots as by humans, like socializing.
• When care givers get more time, they are able to care more elderly. Therefore, family and friends do not have to take care of the elderly anymore, which is an advantage for the society.
• Through the smart home for elderly a new market in home automation is created, which focusses on monitoring devices, etc. Thereby, new jobs and companies can be developed.

Users

Primary users: The elderly:

Secondary users: The care givers:

The family and friends of the elderly:

Tertiary users: Engineers:

Advantages and disadvantages

With smart home technology, there are a lot of advantages and disadvantages. underneath, the most important advantaged and disadvantages are mentioned.

advantages:

• The whole system inside your house can be managed from one place. This can be your phone or a tablet. This has a advantage for elderly who are not able to run certain task by individually, but are now able to run everything through an app on their phone. [1] [2]

• Smart home technologies will increase the security of a household. The app can alert the owner when there is a burglary, can call the police immediately or the fire department when there is a fire. Also, it can unlock doors and light a path with the shortest escape route when the residents need to leave the house as soon as possible. [1]

• There is an increase in energy efficiency. A smart home can shut down appliances that are running but not needed at that time. For example, it can shut off light in a room where nobody is in. Also heating costs will decrease, as the owner can control the heating system when at work. Research has shown that the energy bills are decreased with 30%. [1] [2] [3]

• For elderly, smart home technologies will improve the quality of life. A smart home can remind the owner when to take his medicine or can remind the owner where some stuff is stored when it is lost. All of this can be run with voice command, so that the owner can do everything himself inside his house. most importantly, a smart home system can alert family members and the hospital when the health of the owner is at stake. This can for example hold when the owner fell and cannot get up, or the heart rate of the owner is decreasing.[1] [2] [3]

Disadvantages:

• It is difficult to find a audience for this system, as smart home technologies require some acknowledgement in technology. Especially for the elderly, this can be one of the most important reasons not to implement smart home technologies in their houses. [4] [5]
• Smart home technologies are really expansive. This means that this technology will only be able for the higher class of society. [5] [6]
• When everything in a house is connected to the internet, the privacy of the owner will decrease. Also the system can be hacked by a thief in which it is easier to perform a robbery. People will be skeptic about this fact and therefore will not buy the smart home technology. [5] [6]

What do elderly want in technology [7]

according to a survey held to elderly aged 65-100 in 2011, not many elderly are interested In technology. In that survey, only 10% was interested in technology like cell phone, (wireless) internet, laptop, eReader etc. In contrast to that, 61% does own a cell phone, or 41% does own a PC. But elderly also see the benefits of communication technologies. 66% said that with technology they want to connect with their family and friends. Also 53% want to use technology for sending E-mails and 44% for news.

With current technologies on the market for elderly, safety and security plays a big role. 35% owns a medical pendant alarm, and 15% has a home alarm system. In contrast to that, only 2% has home activity monitoring, which is rather low with the fact that it can approve the health of the elderly. Also, only 1% has an automatic stove shutoff, which can cause severe burnings.

Of course, health and wellness is an important aspect of the elderly life. Research has shown that 59% of the elderly in the USA have high blood pressure, and 27% has diabetes. Only 40% of the elderly above 65 own a blood pressure cuff, almost 20% lower than the number of high blood pressure patients. Next to that, only 17% has a diabetes monitor and 2% has the electronic pill box.

With these numbers it can be said that elderly are not interested in technology, otherwise they would have had more technical appliances. In this research it is also shown that 21% is not interested in learning about new technology. A quarter of the people, only want technology for news, family or friends. On the upper side, 41% is interested in learning new technologies from their doctor or health provider. In that way it can be said that elderly will be more open for new technologies that can improve their health and their quality of living.

Now another hesitation point for the elderly is money. Those with lower incomes are not willing to pay for the technology. If the income is less the $25K, 71% does not want to pay anything on new technology, and only 1% is willing to pay over $100. And with an income greater than $75K, 42% does not want to spend any money to technology.

“I marked on Tablet & Laptop with Camera, “not interested” because I can’t afford them however, it sounds very interesting to be able to keep up with new technology. This survey reminds me of the implication of being close to adolescence I’ve become since I taught school some years ago. Computerized grade books are used now instead of paper ledger. I’m a life-long-learner and still realize that language determines the way we perceive the world and I’m lost on all the new technology that exists today because I haven’t been able to keep up...finances make a difference in one’s life. Many of these questions have to be marked “not interested” because financially it’s not possible to obtain it! My TV is an old Magnavox that’s hanging on just for me! I enjoyed the survey!”

“I think technology is great especially for younger people; the elderly need someone to teach us personally, I feel more safe & secure with my phone and connected to my older family members out of town."

“I am legally blind but I can hear very well!! Most of these devices require sight.”

Opportunities for stakeholders

Doctors and other health providers - recognize trust; introduce technology.

Doctors see social isolation as one of the biggest threats for the healthcare for elderly. They believe that if they can have more contact with friends and family via technology, that their social life will improve a lot. Yet, doctors do not offer any technology to help the elderly.

Senior Housing executives - upon move-in, engage seniors with technology they can use.