Boomers Embrace Senior Care Technology

Balancing their own family demands is hard enough but now boomers are finding that caring for their elder parents requires more time and attention than ever before. Boomers prefer that their loved ones ‘age in place’ in their own homes, maintaining their independence. However, each day boomers as caregivers are faced with evolving and complex medical issues, new medications and a growing list of medical questions that need to be addressed.

Last month, Stepping Stone Partners conducted research with Intuitive Care Advisors focused on baby boomers and the value of healthcare technology in supporting them in their care giving role. Four key healthcare technology categories were explored:

1. Personal Monitoring (emergency response, sensors)
2. Tele-health (vitals monitoring, medical treatment and education)
3. Healthcare Communications (online consultation with doctors/nurses)
4. Medication Compliance/Management (medication monitoring and tracking)

Boomers are frustrated in their caregiver role. They walk the fine line of letting their parent(s) manage their daily lives while monitoring them from afar or stepping in to take on a more active role, with or without their loved one’s permission. “I cannot be there 24x7’” explains Joseph Philips, a 55 year old baby boomer, and yet he received a call in the middle of the night that mom is in the hospital because she thought she was having a heart attack.

Why are boomers often in a ‘reactionary mode’ when it comes to problems with their parents? They are informed when there is an emergency event such as a fall in the bathroom or a fire in the kitchen. Although it is typical of the healthcare system today to be reactive to medical emergencies instead of taking a preventative approach to medical problems, how can the situation be improved?

What if healthcare technology could somehow inform boomers in a “proactive” way that there are problems requiring immediate attention and then monitor the problem areas? With the right technologies installed within his mom’s home, Joseph may have known that his mom had forgotten to take her medication 3 times in the past 2 days, had limited sleep in the past 2 nights, missed her last meal and had significant changes in her heart rate in the last 24 hours. With this information, Joseph could have consulted with his mom’s doctor and taken the necessary precautions to avoid or reduce severity of the outcome.

Research with boomers has revealed there are three key drivers to consumer adoption of healthcare technology for senior care:
1. Enabling boomers to deliver proactive and personalized care
2. Supporting senior’s information and product design needs
3. Developing an integrated healthcare solution which can be fine-tuned to the senior’s evolving needs

Enabling Boomers to Deliver Proactive Personalized Care
Baby boomer caregivers face new challenges all the time as their parent’s needs evolve. These new responsibilities become more difficult when mom lives in another state since the caregiver is physically distanced from knowing what is really going on. Even when mom lives across town, boomers like Joseph cannot always physically be there. This has caused tremendous worry for boomers.
Although many boomers were familiar with the emergency response signaling services for seniors, boomers were completely unaware of healthcare technology options that would inform them about their parent's medical problems, enable their parents to be more in control of their health and help them make better healthcare decisions.

Of all four types of healthcare technology, Boomers were most excited learning about personal monitoring technology because it “supports independence” and helps boomers and their parents feel more safe, secure and in control. One boomer worries about her parents “all the time because they are having a harder and harder time taking care of their household needs and we don’t live very close to one another. I think it would be great to be able to have these sensor devices to help monitor them and for me to know that they are safe and healthy and to keep a close eye on them from afar.”
Boomers have definite activities that they want monitored within the senior’s home which are safety oriented such as the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and front door. “I have a very independent 82 year old father…I don’t think motion detection in the entire house is such a great idea. I would like some way to monitor if he falls in the shower/bath which is something that has happened to him.” Each boomer has their own list of where they want the sensors placed within their parent’s home based on the senior’s health needs. As new problems surface, boomers need to monitor new areas within their parent’s home. One boomer wanted to have her mother’s doors monitored when she was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. “She wandered outside and neighbors found her and called us.”

When learning about Online Health Communications technology, boomers liked the ‘convenience’ of the consultations with the senior’s doctor or nurse and the ability to participate in care decisions with family members. “I have a brother in a different part of the country and he can't see us (parents and myself) very often. Something like this would enable him to see how they are doing and not take my word for it.“ Although boomers cautioned that these online visits cannot replace their parent’s routine visits, this would be valuable in different situations such as following a doctor’s visit to review test results or when the senior is disabled, wheel chair bound or is having trouble traveling. As one boomer stated it is a “great way to check in with the doctor”. In fact, online health communications can enable the boomer and their parent to confer with the doctor and learn about needed changes to medication, diet or activity which can prevent medical problems from reoccurring.

Another problem area for boomers is helping seniors manage the ir medication. When presented with several medication management technologies, boomers were interested in the personalized telephone reminder and medication tracking capabilities because they address several key problems that seniors face such as forgetting to take their medication or taking too much medication. However, several boomers mentioned issues with these medication management technologies. “The patient could open the pill bottle but then get side tracked and not take the pill. Or if they are resistant to taking the medicine they could open the pill bottle and not take the medicine in order to trick the system.”

Boomers know that medication problems can lead to serious medical outcomes and therefore need to find a better way than “lining up the pill boxes each week”. When designing their ideal healthcare management service, boomers selected their most important “need to have” information which included a “list of and instructions for medications” and “medication compliance data (i.e. knowing whether seniors are taking their medication).” This is another way for boomers to be informed and take a more proactive role in caring for seniors.

As caregivers, boomers need to be alerted when different situations occur. Boomers selected their top five situations: “accidents/falls”, ‘significant changes in vitals”, “not taking medication”, “bathroom safety problems” and “leaving the stove on”. Notice that several of these alerts would enable boomers to be more preventative in their care. Although boomers have their own preferences for receiving these alerts, most selected phone/cell phone and email.

Supporting senior’s information and product design needs
Boomers understand that seniors feel their sense of control slipping away as they age. Seniors used to handle everything themselves and slowly their children are stepping in and taking over decisions they once made. Several boomers indicated that seniors are fearful that if their children really knew how they were managing, their children may decide that they can no longer live on their own.

Seniors guard their health related information until they need help in making care decisions or are in emergency situations. “Dad had a stroke two years ago and had uncontrollable blood pressure while his medications were changing. If he had the option to be monitored in the home (Tele-health) instead of the hospital, he would have chosen the home. Now dad is in ‘well mode’ and he would want to disconnect the information being sent to his doctor, although he may want to view it himself.”
As the senior’s health declines, the boomer’s care giving role increases. Boomers check in more frequently, ask more questions and assist in making more decisions. Although boomers believe that healthcare technology will help them in this more demanding role, several boomers cautioned that the seniors are technology challenged and have problems with their remote control. Most boomers are interested in helping seniors learn about different healthcare technologies and in using them. When helping their parents buy technology oriented products, boomers look for specific features to meet the senior’s needs. “Big buttons with great lights that make the numbers show up. The other thing is only one or two (buttons). On and off might be a starter. All those buttons, low lighting and small print are big obstacles.”

Concerning technology, boomers emphasized the senior’s comfort with the television and felt that the online consultation and education should be delivered through the TV. One boomer explains that his mother –in- law “would have watched her television for educational messages from her doctor. She was very curious and followed what her doctor said.”

Developing an integrated healthcare solution which can be fine-tuned to the senior’s evolving needs
When making healthcare decisions about their loved one’s care, boomers recognize the benefits of having one connected system with the essential information sources. “With integration, you see all of the information together for my eye’s and my doctor’s. This helps bring trends to his (doctor’s) attention”.

With an integrated healthcare technology system, boomers and the senior’s doctor can connect the dots on care, collaborate on new medical plans and adjust the care plan as the situation changes. A boomer explains the benefits that he sees. “When a doctor asks how do you feel and mom says fine, he can say ‘I looked at your information and see that your blood pressure is high.' It is good for the doctor to see all this information so that we can discuss it during a call or office visit. I may be interested in seeing all this information too but may not be able to comprehend it because I am not a doctor.” By collaborating, the doctor can interpret what the healthcare information means while the boomer caregiver can contribute observations and select care options that fit into the senior’s world.

In addition to enabling better decisions with the information in one place, boomers saw other benefits to an integrated system such as less equipment to learn and a single point of contact for installation, servicing and support.

Boomers view an integrated solution extending beyond the needed healthcare monitoring and management technologies and connecting into existing systems within the senior’s home. Most boomers want the healthcare technology connected into the home security, appliance and telephone systems. This integration with home systems will enable, for example, the alerting of problems such as leaving the door open or stove on as well as the delivery of reminders through the telephone.
As seniors age, Boomers know they will need to install more new technological capabilities. “If dad only needs the medication reminder, the ability to summons help and an occasional consultation with his doctor, all of the solution is overkill. However, down the road I like the ability to enable these different features. I like the information all in one place and want the ability to expand the products over time.” Boomers want the ability to customize the technology as their parent’s specific needs dictate.

Opportunities for Technology Companies & Service Providers
Boomers feel the burden every day in caring for seniors and see healthcare technology as a way to “lessen the load”. Healthcare technology keeps boomers informed about problems and enables them to participate in decisions with healthcare professionals and their family.

Technology companies can help boomers by designing easy to use and learn products that are senior- friendly, addressing the elder’s declining vision, dexterity and memory issues. To meet the boomers need for an integrated system, technology companies need to partner with other healthcare technology providers, connect their offerings and collaborate on capabilities that support care decisions.

Service providers can help by delivering a personalized integrated system. Providers must begin by educating boomers about their healthcare technology options and consulting with them about the components that address their personal needs. Providers need to work closely with Boomers to set up the system including determining the placement of the sensors and defining the alerts (i.e. alert types, alert recipients and methods of alert delivery). Finally, providers need to serve as a single source of service and support for the boomers as their loved one’s needs grow.
Today’s seniors may be the first wave of consumers to have healthcare technologies installed in their homes to support care management. However, the aging boomers are following closely behind and will be experienced in the many benefits that healthcare technology can provide for their care giving children when it is their turn. For a copy of the ICA Boomer Healthcare Technology Research Report, please contact Rob Scheschareg at robs@icareAdvisors.com.

Sherri Dorfman is CEO & Customer Ambassador of Stepping Stone Partners. She helps companies understand the needs of different patient segments and guides the development of information based products and services to meet these needs. Sherri also plans and runs Customer Advisory Councils to capture ongoing insight. She can be reached at Sdorfman@Stepping-Stone.net.