I know, it’s been a little quiet here at Geritech…mainly because things are busy over at Better Health While Aging (BHWA).
But I haven’t forgotten about tech tools to help older adults and families. In fact, the more the audience at BHWA grows, the more I feel a need to find useful tools that can help them.
Unsurprisingly, a big need is for help with cognitive issues and dementia caregiving.
In particular, people often want to know what technology I can suggest to help their older loved one stay safe at home, or be found if lost outside the home.
My own panel of consultation patients is currently too small to enable me to have a lot of hands-on experience with these types of tech tools.
So last month, I invited my former VA colleague Mary Hulme to join me on the BHWA podcast.
Mary is a geriatric social worker who is an expert in dementia care. She also developed a particular interest in technology tools several years ago, and co-authored the book “Caring from Afar: A Guide to Home Sensor Systems for Aging Parents” in 2014.
On the podcast, we discussed the ever-present challenge of balancing safety and autonomy, and then we talked about several different types of technology that families can use.
If this is a topic of interest to you, you can find the podcast episode here:
061 – Interview: Using Technology to Balance Safety & Autonomy in Dementia
Have you used any home sensor, personal emergency response, or GPS-tracking systems for someone with Alzheimer’s or another dementia?
If so, I’d love to know what you tried and how it worked out for you. Please post a comment here, or on the show notes page for the podcast episode!
This is not about dementia but it is about patient was losing sight as my mother was. To help her know where the bathroom was at night I put those little floor LEDs I strung them from her bed around the outside of her room all the way into the bathroom. I just take them to the floor or Twisted them around Furniture legs.