Smart technology is making waves around the world, even in the world of senior care. It has the potential to make our daily lives easier, but that’s only if we know what it is and what it does. For a lot of people–especially seniors–this new type of technology can be confusing and even create more problems than it solves. If we’re going to use smart tech to make life better, this is obviously something that we want to avoid.
Smart tech takes every day things and increases communication between those devices and tasks, allowing things to be done more efficiently and in a cooperative manner. For example, smart tech items can help you to keep your home at a more energy efficient temperature, keeping your house more comfortable and help you to save money on your heating and cooling bills.
Great. But, what does this have to do with senior care? How can it help our elderly loved ones to live better, more independent lives?
Better Communication
Smart tech helps our loved ones communicate with the world around them better. Whether this is using an iPad to Facetime a grandchild, or if it’s an alert system letting emergency crews know that they have fallen and not moved from the floor for three minutes. Smart technology can help our older loved ones stay connected with the outside world and be a part of their community, whether they actually leave the house or not. By staying connected and communicating, new technology allows older individuals to stay independent because a lot of the immediate needs for supervision and human contact can be alleviated.
Better Safety
Living alone can be scary for younger individuals in good health. For older people, that fear might still be there, but there can also be a fierce determination to keep things the way that they were. Because they’ve lived independently for so long, they wish to continue to do so. This is certainly understandable, but when safety becomes an issue, these kinds of sentiments need to take a backseat.
But if technology can successfully overcome some of those safety concerns, then independence can be maintained for longer. The fall example listed above is just one way that this is happening. Tech can also indicate if toilets are not being flushed, if your loved one does not get out of bed in the morning, and much more. This is still a developing field, but the promises of smart tech look like they can help us to ensure that elderly individuals are living safe and healthy lives, even if they are by themselves.
A Warning
Smart tech cannot do it all. Even with the latest and greatest technology, there are some things that cannot be accomplished. This is especially true for older folk suffering from dementia or a disability. In these cases, tech can help improve safety, but human intervention is also necessary. Recognizing this can be tough, but being honest with yourself and your situation can help. Be sure to speak with a professional care expert if you have concerns.
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