Making Sense of Sensors for Senior Care

The development of new sensors to help us monitor our aging loved ones holds out the promise of enabling them to live safer, longer lives often in more comfortable environments, at more affordable prices.  Big players like the Intel-GE joint venture, CareInnovations, and Verizon Wireless are getting into the game offering the ability to monitor our aging loved ones in both their own residences and in institutional environments.  And while the technology is still relatively new in its deployment, the early results have been encouraging.

Sensors, Sensors, Everywhere

The basic idea behind using sensors is that they can serve as a proxy for having eyes and ears on the patient, without having to hire someone full time.  We’re seeing GPS enabled sensors that can track the whereabouts of a loved one – particularly useful for patients with Alzheimers or other forms of dementia.  Other sensors can be placed under beds, on doors, toilets, toothbrushes, medicine dispensers, or even coffee pots.  Their combined output can paint a fairly thorough picture of what the patient is up to without a 24/7 dedicated caregiver.  But what is required for this to be effective is 24/7 monitoring that is qualified and competent.  Having sensors is almost useless if no one is watching. 

The use of these sensors in an assisted living environment is proving to be both effective in terms of patient safety and longevity, as well as cost-effective from the institutional perspective.  That, at least is the claim made by CareInnovations, which has deployed its QuietCare monitoring system in assisted living facilities across the US.  QuietCare works a little differently from some other systems.  It relies on wireless sensors placed throughout an assisted living residence.  The sensors track motion in multiple locations, and send that data through a central hub in the home to an offsite monitoring facility.  There, some pretty sophisticated software develops a model of the patient’s behavior.  Computers track the normal routine, from time in bed, to activity, to eating, and hygiene.  If the sensors detect activity, or lack of activity that significantly deviates from the norm, the system automatically sends an alert that a staff member can respond to in real time.  The profile created by regular monitoring of the sensors can detect anything from unusual out-of-bed activity, unusual bathroom activity that could signal an illness, or even to unusual kitchen activity that might reflect a significant change in eating habits. 

Using just one parameter, fall prevention, CareInnovations claims that in an assisted living facility its QuietCare monitoring system  can  dramatically reduce the number of falls.  CareInnovations studied two assisted living populations over a period of 52 weeks.  There were 38 residents in the QuietCare equipped study, and 45 residents in the control group.  During that period, the QuietCare monitored population suffered falls at the average rate of .48 per week, while the control population suffered falls at the average rate of 1.35 per week.

Overall, the QuietCare monitored facility recorded 58% fewer falls over the course of the year long study than that of the control group.  From a non-quantifiable perspective, that means a boost in peace of mind both for residents and caregivers alike.  From the institutional perspective it means fewer costs for hospitalization and other higher cost long-term care needs. 

Falls are one of the most dramatic risks to the health of seniors, and in many cases they are preventable.  As we know, a fall can result in significant injury and the complications can lead to death.  New research in sensors is likely to result in significant mitigation of those risks.  At the Irish based research facility  TRIL (Technology Research for Independent Living), which is funded in part by Intel, scientists have found that they can use sensors to predict falls within an 80% level of accuracy.  Knowing the risk for falling allows patients and caregivers a better shot at taking simple preventive measures to reduce those risks.  Another piece of research that’s being done is the development of a smart cane that will include sensors that measure an individual’s gait and can also spot trends that are likely to lead to falls.

While none of these measures can assure fall prevention, taken together they can reduce the probability of falling, and in the case of QuietCare, they can also guarantee a speedier response if there is an incident.   Overall, the development of more sophisticated senors and monitoring systems, whether in assisted living facilities, or for those who choose to stay at home, means more likelihood that our loved ones can retain their independence longer, making their lives better, and give both family and professional senior caregivers better peace of mind.

About Author Gary M. Kaye is an award-winning journalist who has been covering hi-tech since IBM launched its first PC in 1981 while he was working for NBC News. He later became the technology producer for “ABC News Business World”, and “ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings”. He went on to cover technology for a number programs at CNN.  More recently he was the lead producer for technology at the Fox Business Network.  Currently he focuses on the nexus of Baby Boomers, Seniors and Technology.  He created “In The Boombox”, (www.intheboombox.tv) which looks at technology with a Boomer perspective.  He is a regular contributor to the AARP website, AARP radio, and a half dozen other websites.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Cornell University, and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the University of California at Berkeley.