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The Caregiver Innovation Show
Embracing Age Tech: Transforming Elderly Care
Technology is transforming senior care by addressing critical gaps in services and helping older adults maintain independence, dignity, and safety while aging in place.
• Aging in place technology helps seniors identify and address home safety issues like grab bars, ramps, and removing trip hazards
• Telehealth addresses transportation barriers and infection risks while helping seniors access care despite doctor shortages
• Transportation remains one of the biggest challenges for seniors, with public transportation often being unreliable or time-consuming
• Multi-generational housing and ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units) are gaining popularity as affordable housing solutions that reduce isolation
• Digital monitoring systems can be personalized to seniors' preferences—from emergency-only alerts to comprehensive activity tracking
• Medication management technology helps track compliance and provides critical data to healthcare providers
• Social determinants of health (safe neighborhoods, housing, transportation, social connection) are increasingly addressed through technology
• Digital equity remains a significant barrier, particularly in rural and low-income communities
• Medicare Advantage plans are beginning to cover more technology solutions, especially for remote patient monitoring and chronic care management
• Implementation and education are crucial—seniors need support to fully utilize available technology
Age tech is here to stay, and empowering seniors to use these tools effectively is the key to widespread adoption and improved quality of life.
Welcome to the Age Tech Movement podcast. My name is Nick and on today's episode I've got Amy Brandon here with Ageless Thriving. Amy has years of experience working with elderly people and recently we've started conversations about how she's starting to see technology be adapted into elderly care. Amy, welcome to the show.
Speaker 2:Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, thank you. So talk us through, tell us a little bit about yourself.
Speaker 2:So I've been in healthcare for a while and I really became interested in senior care when I worked with a self-directing program in New York state where people would take their own, they would determine what kind of care they needed and get a caregiver to help them with their activities of daily living, and I realized that so much of just getting through your day can be complicated and burdensome, and so it really piqued my interest, and from there it's just grown to the point now where I really am seeing the benefits of technology and how that impacts seniors with their activities of daily living and also what we call a social determinants of health, which is thriving, safe neighborhoods, housing, medicine, realizing that you have to have all of these pieces in place in order to thrive at any age, particularly when you're a senior.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it sounds like those obviously are very, very important. So, in your eyes, are there any specific gaps in elderly care that you're seeing Any gaps? But is there any gaps that you're starting to see that are starting to be age tech, or technology for aging adults is starting to help in those areas?
Speaker 2:Two jump out to me right away. One is aging in place, where you maintain your home as you age and utilizing technology to help you recognize what can be improved in your home so that you do age safely Grab bars, ramps, moving area rugs, that kind of thing and we use technology to go into somebody's house and look around and give them recommendations and really preventing falls, because that's one of the biggest problems with seniors. So that technology has been incredible. And then the other piece of technology that I'm loving is the telehealth, because it addresses transportation issues and spreading germs. If you can have a telehealth appointment and at least get into the doctor to be seen, then they can determine if you need to come into the office. But we're really having a doctor shortage now. So those two pieces of technology the aging in place and the telehealth are the two that I'm seeing at the forefront.
Speaker 1:And tell us a little bit about you know I kind of want to pick your brain about the social determinants of health, but some areas that you're seeing that adoption of this technology is kind of slow or hard or challenging or isn't turning out the way that most would hope.
Speaker 2:I think the biggest problem right now is transportation. As people age, they can't drive as much, maybe they can't drive at night, maybe they can't drive at all, and a lot of them are reliant on public transportation, which honestly gives a good attempt and in some cases does work, but for the most part it's it can be unreliable. It can be you can schedule a doctor's appointment a month out, but you may not be able to confirm your public transportation for two to three days prior, which can be anxiety provoking if you need to get to that appointment, which can be anxiety provoking if you need to get to that appointment. And transportation can take hours and you can wait a couple of hours after an appointment and kind of sit there just waiting for your ride back home, which is anxiety provoking when you're a senior. So I'd love to see a lot of changes made in the transportation arena made in the transportation arena.
Speaker 1:I know I've seen that there's several companies that are out there that are trying to to almost be like ride shares for seniors. Yeah, and I know that's the hardest is trying to take your you know, the keys away from a loved one and that's the their last, their last bit of independence, right there.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:What about uh, their last, their last bit of independence right there? Yeah, what about uh? We've talked before about shelter. I mean, are you seeing in not any specific companies, but what are some concepts that are out there that are kind of helping with uh, helping seniors with with like housing options and just thinking outside the box of how seniors age?
Speaker 2:That's a great question. There's a couple of really good companies that are creating livable solutions where a senior would not have to take stairs Everything's kind of a rambler setup Much smaller footprint so that they can get around quicker and very cost effective very cost effective. Really, there's a lot of good changes in the housing industry. The other thing that's happening is there's a lot more multi-generational housing, which is huge because if you can raise everybody under one roof or to have some of your family and friends close by, it cuts down on all kinds of costs, including isolation, which is a big issue. But this multi-generational housing is really getting a lot of traction right now and it's a good thing.
Speaker 1:I've even seen some products that are out there that are modular houses that you could put up in a backyard almost.
Speaker 2:Like they call those additional dwelling units, adus, and there's a lot more legislation that's changing, that is, and zoning is changing, that's allowing those ADUs to be utilized in backyards, front yards, side yards, and it's a good thing because they're much more affordable and the footprint is smaller. As you age, you don't need as much Maybe the kids are gone and so your needs have shrunken down and it's much more manageable in those smaller modular homes.
Speaker 1:Are there any solutions that you are seeing that are helping address economic determinants, what do we call it Social determinants of health? You talk a little bit more about that.
Speaker 2:About what they are.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and just again, which maybe which, how technology or age tech is helping in that? So far we've talked about housing, we've talked about transportation. You talked a little bit about like aging in place and fall prevention and detection place and fall prevention and detection. You've also got like medicine and you know, food or just basic, basic needs.
Speaker 2:Well, one of the things that social determinants of health looks at is accessibility and safety. So, are you able to get, is your community set up such that you can get to the library, that you can get to the stores that you need? Are you safe doing so? Safety and services that are readily available for you or to you become another part of that, because that's that's your community right there. So, but again, that's where I really rely heavily on the transportation piece, because if you get out of the house and you're social, the house and you're social, then your community becomes vibrant and then you feel better and then you're healthier because you feel better. It's just, it's a win-win all the way around.
Speaker 1:So we talked a little bit about medication, we talked a little bit about telehealth, but what are you seeing? That there's some challenges when it comes to medication management or telehealth adoption Both sides. What have you seen that's good and what have you seen that's not good?
Speaker 2:So for medication management, one of the biggest issues is compliance People not taking their medications at the time they're prescribed and how they're prescribed and that can be because they are not interested in just in terms of overwhelm, there could be some confusion.
Speaker 2:A lot of times. Seniors have many medications that they have to take. There are products that are out there that address those, and they range everywhere from a simple pill box with instructions to something more technology-based that can help them with reminders and sorting out their medications, and that's a big deal, that's a really big deal. So that's very and be comfortable with telehealth and comfortability is the first step is just saying, hey, what do you know about this? And from there you can determine where you need to start to educate them, and I think adoption will occur faster once we meet them where they are and they don't have to be anywhere. In particular, they can be. They can know nothing about it, not even how to turn it on. That's okay. The burden is on us to teach them that and then we'll start to see that change and then I think it'll become more part of their daily routine.
Speaker 1:And some things I've been reading about is just like the infrastructure or lack thereof.
Speaker 2:Infrastructure and seniors may not even have internet access so that's digital equity and that is absolutely a problem, especially in low-income communities and in rural medicine, and there is a push to make that more available. One of the things they're doing in Washington state is putting telehealth booths in libraries so you can go there, provided you have a ride or a way to get there and have your telehealth appointment, because that's absolutely a problem. Digital equity If we're going to go digital, then what does it mean if not everybody can access digital, has access to digital technology?
Speaker 1:Yeah, Can you share a specific success story where you've seen technology meaningfully improve social determinants of health for seniors?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So one of the things that I think is huge is there's some technology out there. When you have a senior and they are maybe pre-dementia or you feel like maybe like a pre-Alzheimer's or they're starting to forget, you can get. There's all kinds of technology where you can can track them or you can just check on them to make sure they're fine. Some adult seniors don't want to be checked on, some want to be checked on all the time and some only want to only want you to know if there's a problem. So the technology is becoming very adaptable.
Speaker 2:You could have one piece of technology and your mom might say I only want you to know if there's an emergency, and that can be arranged. If she's fallen, if she hasn't gotten up out of bed, if she's been in the restroom for too long, if the refrigerator door hasn't been opened, okay, now we're getting notified, there's a problem. Now we're getting notified there's a problem. But if she says I just don't feel safe, pretty much any time you can change those settings such that you're really monitoring her more closely, that's amazing to me.
Speaker 1:How do you even start a conversation like that With a senior. How do?
Speaker 2:you even start a conversation like that.
Speaker 2:With a senior I think a lot about monitoring them. It's a hard discussion to have, but it's one of those discussions where you approach it like this is not going to be easy, but it's necessary. And I think giving a couple of examples of hard truths I saw this, I saw this, I saw this and ask what does that make you think? If you were seeing somebody else do that, what conclusion would you have? I know seniors don't want to feel like a burden, and that makes sense, but this technology allows them to maintain their independence and dignity and safety, and then I think it is really the goal and is the underlying kind of purpose behind all of this and what is, you know, not without naming, like specific companies, but like what technologies are out there, with this whole monitoring thing for seniors?
Speaker 2:Hundreds, there's hundreds.
Speaker 1:What kind like? I guess, what like? Obviously you've got cameras, you've got audio you've got motion detectors.
Speaker 2:You can watch. You can have a camera to see your loved one take their medication. You could be notified just through a sensor that mom hasn't left the bathroom, the bathroom door hasn't moved in five hours and she, you know, five hours ago she went in Fall. Detection is a big one Alarms on the front door, especially with people that are starting to do some wandering Reminders about food choices and even, too, reminders about, you know, every Wednesday you do your laundry, mom. I noticed mom starting to forget that a little bit. Why don't we pop that on the calendar, the electronic calendar? You're going to get a reminder every Wednesday. Hey, you need to do laundry Thursday. You do the garbage Thursday. You do the garbage Grocery shopping's on Friday and it takes away the conversation about well, did you remember?
Speaker 1:Because it's put on a third party. Yeah, it's a lot to take in. If you were, it can be overwhelming. Even just in that little piece, what would be your? You know you're thrown into this situation and what would be your first couple moves when it comes to implementing technology?
Speaker 2:technology. Well, I think the first thing to do is address what your budget looks like to well, to recognize there's an issue and then to look at what your budget looks like and, um, if you find somebody who you trust, um online or through a service, they'll help you come up with. You know, if you have $200, these are the two products I would recommend. If you have, you know, 500, here's the three products I would recommend. The one thing about it is that a lot of these technologies have a monthly monitoring. You have to pay to have a monthly service. You know, monitor your activities, but it's not really that expensive. It really isn't, not when you break down the cost savings associated with, let's say, if you fell, those are big time costs. These are nominal, comparatively speaking. I do a lot of that when I talk to families or even different businesses, breaking down the money. You know this is eight bucks a day.
Speaker 1:Do you have any specific success stories that you've with a senior that's adopted any form of technology into their lives?
Speaker 2:I have a lot of examples form of technology into their lives. I have a lot of examples. I think the biggest one is medication management and well, I guess in that is chronic care management and remote patient monitoring. So you have to be compliant. So the technology that I've seen, where patients are using it to monitor, In what aspect?
Speaker 2:Like when you get to the, when you go, when you have a telehealth appointment, or or you're going into the doctor on Monday and you can't remember what all you took. If you took your medication on Thursday, you don't know what you did two Wednesdays ago. Probably most of us don't day you don't know what you did two Wednesdays ago Probably most of us don't. But if you are able to, if it's able to register through a piece of technology, your doctor can simply get access to it and say okay, I saw that you did this every day at 10 am, but you missed Wednesday. So you should not be having the symptoms you're having versus. I have no idea if you took it, but that's why your blood pressure's up, because I don't know what you took and we're dealing with a little bit of maybe forgetfulness here. So we're going to have to change monitoring your compliance so that we know what we're dealing with. That, to me, is huge.
Speaker 1:For sure. Where do you see technology in the next five to 10 years? When it comes to this, I mean, I've been in this, you know, monitoring age tech for three or four years now and it's hard to keep up, I can't even. What do you envision the next? You know, five to 10 years? I would me personally. I look, I see a lot of personal robots, like in the house.
Speaker 2:Yeah, personal robots, for sure, I think I always like to look at where Medicare advantages, because what we're starting to see with Medicare advantages, instead of just offering one size fits all solution, they're starting to do it based on need and it's changing what is offered. And if you look at that in terms of wow, there's a huge offering for remote patient monitoring. They're baking a lot of that into their Medicare Advantage plans. That's a good indicator that that's where the market is growing, because that's where the need is high.
Speaker 2:Chronic care management most seniors have two forms of chronic pain, and so you're going to see a lot of changes in terms of how that is managed. A lot of changes in terms of how that is managed. There is a segment of the population that is going to be able to and want to have a robot, but that's going to be a little bit of a distance, I think, especially based on pricing. But those more practical needs, we're starting to see changes in the Medicare Advantage plans, in some Medicaid waiver plans, and a little bit of shift into what companies are focusing on. I see them focusing more on the social determinants of health and less just. This is what we're going to give all seniors, seniors, because not all seniors are in the same boat, so it's getting a little more personalized, I think.
Speaker 1:Kind of break down some of the Medicare black hole or wormhole that we're going to. We could go on a whole wormhole with, with. Medicare but what are you seeing? That's getting covered or may not. Might not be getting covered.
Speaker 2:Well, I'll use a recent example. We had a really good benefit for transportation and it filled in a lot of those gaps where public transportation wasn't working. And we lost that benefit. A lot of our Advantage plans dropped it, and so now seniors are relying strictly on public transportation and as we have more and more seniors and there's more demand on the public transportation, it's just not working. It needs to be more flexible and there needs to be more options. It's just not working. It needs to be more flexible and there needs to be more options, and I think that was unfortunate to see but that's something.
Speaker 1:That transportation part is really a big deal.
Speaker 2:Where else do you see gaps in Medicare coverage when it comes to age tech becoming a problem physically, and it's very expensive to be in an adult facility. So being at home is more cost effective, but by being at home you're now more isolated. So there are wonderful products out there that do give you an ability to create a community online where you feel heard, you feel like you have some entertainment and some stimulation and ultimately that is a cost saver, because then you feel better and almost everything about your health improves.
Speaker 1:Is stuff like that it is covered in Medicare or it is not covered in Medicare.
Speaker 2:Well, there's a, there's a hundred of, there's a hundred hundreds of Medicare advantage plans. Everything under Medicare is pretty much standard for everybody. But the Advantage plans are where you shop around and find your different offerings. So you just have to go through them. But there's more of an eye toward the future in what they're going to be offering. But we're not there yet.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we're not there yet. Yeah, and as we we land this plane here on this interview, uh, on this podcast, uh, if you, if you had a giant billboard and you know people that are not aware of age tech or or any, what, what, what would your billboard be? Around the age tech sector, about getting the word out or misconceptions, whatever it may be. It would say something.
Speaker 2:Well, you know I was thinking about that. It'd say something very simple like age tech is here, it's not going away. It's never going away now, but we need to embrace it. So it might say something like H-TECH is here, let's get our seniors empowered.
Speaker 2:Because, it's one thing to develop a product. It's another thing to implement a product. It's another thing to implement a product and the manpower associated with educating seniors is an expense, but it's what's going to get the product used and now talked about, and now more people want it. So we've got to empower them.
Speaker 1:There are two questions With implementing. Are there solutions out there that people will implement this stuff for you?
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's some wonderful services. I know of several where you can either have a membership or you can pay a nominal fee and they will help you with technology and they'll help you with many questions that you have. I also was talking to a company recently and was really impressed with their ability to help seniors answer the questions that they might have. So it's not a call and get a bot multiple times on a 1-800 number. It's we will actually help them answer the phone and help them by addressing their questions and it's just an end. I think that's the. That's money well spent, because then it's going to get implemented and it's going to get used. But I am seeing a change in terms of people acknowledging that seniors need to be empowered to utilize the technology.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's huge.
Speaker 2:I do too.
Speaker 1:Back to your billboard answer. I think what I've struggled with is, when I bring up the word age tech, it's always a conversation of what is that? Yeah, what is it? How do we get over that? How do we change that?
Speaker 2:Well, I think it's. If you're an industry insider, you're somebody who this is what to do. It seems like everybody would know, but then you go read something else outside of your industry and it's the same question, right? So it's just simply. I think you know. If you say to somebody look at how much time 12-year-old boys spend online or 12-year-old kids spend online, because everything now is a device or a video game, because everything now is a device or a video game, it's the same. It's applicable now to seniors. It's the same thing, it's just an older audience.
Speaker 1:Go ahead.
Speaker 2:And why would seniors embrace age tech? Because there's a lot of benefit to it. For example, the telehealth harder and harder to get into the doctor. I'd rather my mom get into a telehealth today at two than wait two months to be seen in person At least the telehealth they can look at her. Give us a quick assessment and make plans for that next step If that's the case, and make plans for that next step If that's the case.
Speaker 1:Let's learn to embrace telehealth. Yeah, I was just going to ask a question. I completely forgot. You're good. Yeah, well, amy, thank you so much for your time today. I had a good time and I think we should do this again.
Speaker 2:Let's do it again. Thanks for having me. It was a great conversation.
