5 Benefits That Technology Can Offer To Seniors And Their Caregivers
Over the course of elderly people’s lifetimes, technology has come a very long way. They have seen everything from man landing on the moon to the rise of society dependent on the Internet to dramatic medical advances and more.
Senior Care center have witnessed ways that technology is changing the aging process. Impact the quality of your clients’ lives by sharing the following five technology solutions that might help to keep elderly adults socially connected, safe, and healthy while also making caregiving chores less stressful for members of their family.
1. Social Connection – Social Media and Video Chat can help Seniors stay in touch with Loved Ones who live far away.
UnitedHealthCare’s 2012 100@100 centenarians survey reports that remaining socially engaged is as important for healthy again as maintaining a healthy body and genetics are.
Although no technology can replace in-person human interaction, Internet-based communication channels like social media and email or video chat services such as Skype, can help to supplement the social interactions of seniors when visits with family and friends are too infrequent or not possible. Seniors can see if their senior center offers Internet how-to courses, or if they have a grandchild who is tech-savvy to get them set up and help them get started.
2. Safety – Seniors Who Live Alone Can Get Assistance With Just the Push of One Button
It is shown consistently by surveys that 80-90 percent of seniors wish to remain their own homes as they continue to age. There are many technological solutions that can make doing this safer for your loved one. Any elderly person who lives alone should have access to a Personal Emergency Response System (PERS). When a person is wearing a PERS device, it allows them to call for assistance by just pushing a button. Seniors, as well as their family, can have the peace of mind when they know a PERS can help to provide assistance in an emergency situation.
Also, safety is a major concern for seniors suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia, particularly those who tend to wander. There are many GPS tracking devices that are available that can monitor the location of the senior and can also send out alerts. Those are excellent tools that can reduce caregiver’s concerns and help to prevent deadly or dangerous situations. For Alzheimer’s wanderers, there are a number of innovative GPS gadgets that are available.
3. Exercise – Playing Video Games Can Help Seniors keep Their Minds And Bodies Moving
There are many assisted living communities and nursing homes that recognize the exercise and recreational benefit that are offered to elderly adults by Nintendo’s Wii sports games. You can read more about it on https://srcarecenter.com/communities/assisted-living. Seniors who live at home can benefit as well from owning a Wii or another type of video game system that is controlled by motion. These games offer an enjoyable time for seniors to participate in light forms of physical activities from the comfort of their own home.
For mental exercise, there are games that seniors can try like Mahjong (matching and memory), Trivial Pursuit (recall of facts), and Tetris (spatial recognition). Encourage seniors to do some practicing by themselves and then challenge friends or grandkids to a game.
4. Medication Management – Medication Errors Can Be Prevented By Using Smartphone Apps
Many seniors have difficulties keeping track of all of the medications they take. There is an obvious reason for this. Medco Health Solutions conducted a 2009 survey that showed that more than half of all older adults who responded to the survey stated that took five different prescription drugs at least on a regular basis, and 25 percent stated they took 10 to 19 pills per day.
Pill boxes can help with this. However, technological solutions that offer “time to refill” alerts and reminders can potentially help seniors stick to their medication schedule. Elderly adults and their caregivers also can use the Personal Caregiver or Rxmindme smartphone medication reminder apps to help prevent medication errors and reduce how often seniors forget to take their medication.
5. Health Tracking – The Process of Accessing and Maintaining Seniors’ Health Information Can Be Simplified By Using Online Tools
Cloud-based health information system and smartphone apps can help the elderly and their caregiver keep track of information like health conditions, medication schedules, physician contact, and medical history, in an organized and accessible way.
Senior health tracking tools like Me and My Caregivers make it a lot easier for senior healthcare professionals to have access to comprehensive information on a senior patient, to help make the most informed decisions on their treatment.
Find even more benefits that technology can offer by seniors by discovering how technology can help seniors reduce their depression and stay in their homes longer.