The demand for Senior care is growing rapidly. According to FranchiseHelp, “as the boomer population reaches age 65, the senior population is projected to reach 83.7 million – almost double the estimated number in 2012 and approximately twenty percent of the total US population.” The challenges to manage the needs of seniors is increasing too. One challenge is that “the paid, regulated number of senior care service providers in the United States in 2012 was 58,500, servicing 8mm people.” The question becomes how to humanize senior care within the limitations of available resources?
One answer is the introduction of IoT into senior care. How, at least one industry expert, is envisioning “SMART communities” which are defined as “groups of people who have committed to improving the quality of life for seniors, using IoT to enable: Safety, Mental/Physical Health, Activity, Rest and Togetherness.”
How may IoT assist with senior care? Here are a few examples:
- IoT embedded in clothing can track the whereabouts of senior care patients in order to turn-on lighting, restrict access to staircases and set temperatures.
- IoT sensors can monitor health-related concerns and monitor behavior predicting potential falls.
- Accelerometers can be affixed to the legs or backboard of beds to recognize when a resident has gotten out of bed, rolled out of bed or left the bed at night and not gotten back to bed.
- IoT sensors can connect seniors with loved ones for remote monitoring and help kickoff a facetime or similar interaction .
You can read the full article about IoT for senior care at Senior Living.
