Aging in Place:

The Role of New Technologies

    At the 2005 White House Conference on Aging, there was an exposition that featured some concepts for the implementation of technologies to allow people to stay in their homes longer and more safely.

Among the many concepts were: 
~Hot water sensors that kept water temperatures from possible scalding
~Bathroom alert systems that send a message if the client fails to come out of the shower or         bathroom after a prescribed period of time
~Sensors that can determine if a person has fallen and is not moving
~Sensors that show if the user has failed to get out of bed in the morning at the usual time
~Video systems such as those in nursing homes, referred to as a "Granny-Cam." Available as    a stand-alone or to augment the sensors placed throughout the home, they can provide       

   one or two-way video between aging parents and their adult children.

If you talk to Boomers and especially seniors about some of their fears that impact their lifestyle and quality of life, it should come as no surprise that among their top responses are:

· Fear of losing their independence and becoming reliant on others

· Fear of placement into a nursing home - 89% wish to age in place in their own homes

· Fear of a lingering death

So here's the dilemma: seniors want to maintain their independence, but are increasingly relying upon caregiving support from their adult children. About 63% of these caregivers are providing physical or financial support for an aging parent. What's the solution? It's modern technology.

About half of all seniors are amenable to using technology to maintain their independence. You'd expect Boomers who are heavy users of today's modern technology to apply it in the lives of their parents. But only about 14% of Boomers have looked to technology for solutions to enhancing the aging in place experience.

Today, there are new technologies that can monitor movement, daily activities, medications, falls, even turn off the stove or shut off a running faucet. Some systems can actually learn a senior's schedules and activity patterns. They can be programmed to send an alert either to a central office or to an adult child if the sensor picks up a change in pattern. These devices can register a medicine cabinet being opened up the expected number of times per day for prescription drugs to be consumed. It's not perfect, but it's a good start.

As with all newer technologies, innovations for their uses continue to grow. And, as they have with HDTV digital televisions, prices will continue to come down. That, of course, will make their application and use more pervasive in the homes of those we love and want to protect when we can't be there. Technology in aging continues to be a great idea and is increasing in usage. Taking advantage of these modern day support systems will help to contain costs while enhancing independence and quality of life for our aging seniors.

Ron Kauffman is a Certified Senior Advisor, host of Successful Aging, a live radio talk show, and an expert on issues of aging and caregiving. He is the author of Caring for a Loved One with Alzheimer's Disease, available at www.seniorlifestyles.net. He can be reached by e-mail at or by telephone at 561-626-4481.