Health monitoring technologies are a healthier and safer way for seniors, especially those who want to age in place. It improves older adults’ quality of life while making them more independent, boosting their self-esteem. Health monitoring technologies help enhance seniors’ safety, mainly those with dementia or cognitive impairment. They have simple-to-use features that senior citizens can quickly learn and adopt.

These technologies offer connections to assistance, ensuring peace of mind for the older adult’s loved ones and caregivers. This article outlines six crucial technologies to help seniors monitor their health.

1.   Wearable technology

Wearable technology consists of smart electronic devices worn on the skin’s surface to detect and study information regarding different bodily functions. Wearable devices for the elderly can help monitor your health, letting you remain active while feeling safe. They have small sensors that record even the most minor body changes, including increased heart rates, with new details displaying every few minutes or seconds.

Wearable technologies that track your health enable you to share information with your doctor, including your mobile dentist, loved ones, and home support workers to ensure they’re always aware of your health condition and any unexpected medical emergency. Fitness trackers, GPS technology, smart watches, personal alarms, and heart rate monitors are wearable devices you can invest in to monitor your health.

2.   Telemedicine technology

Attending regular doctor appointments can be challenging for the elderly, especially those with restrictions or who are homebound, which makes it hard to leave home. Telemedicine or telehealth leverages telecommunication and electronic technology to offer medical care remotely. It provides seniors with alternatives to manage complex health issues, access care whenever needed, and minimize the burden on their caregivers.

Telehealth technology promotes convenient access to clinical care. It also supports remote symptom monitoring where health data, including cardiac stats, blood pressure, respiratory rates, and oxygen levels, is reported, gathered, and assessed. Telemedicine technology features allow the storage and sharing of medical data, such as X-rays, MRIs, CAT scans, and texts, videos, and photo-based patient data.

3.   Mobile health apps

According to a healthy aging poll, seven in ten older adults who have used mobile health apps have done so to monitor their health. These applications enable users to track their health behaviors, learn more about their health, and get personalized support via tablets or smartphones. Most of these medical apps often manage chronic health issues like type 2 diabetes and can also connect to other health monitoring technologies, including continuous glucose monitors.

With these apps, you can monitor everything, including calories, exercise, blood sugar, and blood pressure then use the data to manage a chronic disease or remain aligned with your health goals.

4.   Robotic technology

Robotic technology can assist with monitoring symptoms and behavior, physical caregiving activities, and providing cognitive support for seniors requiring dementia care. Power-assisted robots for transferring older adults from wheelchairs and beds, assistive robots for helping with personal mobility, and bathing and toiletry robots can be helpful for senior citizens with physical mobility restrictions.

Monitoring robots containing sensor systems, therapeutic and social interaction robots have a specific application for older adults with dementia who have difficulties with communication, thinking, memory, and mood changes in personality, behavior, and mood. Robots can remind seniors with memory loss to eat and take medication while helping minimize negative psychological and behavioral symptoms. They can also help them live independently.

5.   Smart home technology

Smart home technology can provide discreet health and wellness monitoring to seniors while enabling them to age in place. Since safety is a significant concern for seniors, smart doorbells, security systems, and locks can help seniors to live freely and independently. Security systems, particularly those that use safety light curtain sensors often used in manufacturing, enable caregivers to monitor a senior’s activities throughout the house using audio and visual controls. This makes it easier for them to spot physical health issues or accidents like falls immediately after they happen for quick medical response.

The risk of falls and other injuries is reduced with automated lights, which can automatically be turned off or on when leaving or entering a room and even be voice-activated. A smart home device can be programmed to notify you to take your medication or visit your healthcare provider for a checkup. It can also help with round-the-clock biomedical monitoring for sound health.

6.   Automatic pill dispensers

Older adults often forget to take their medication. Automatic pill dispensers let you set customizable alerts to notify you or your caregiver/ loved ones when it’s time for your medication. It dispenses the exact dose needed. With these dispensers, you can set text or call medication reminders to avoid missing notifications if you’re in a different room. An automatic pill dispenser ensures you get the right medication at the right time and maintains a record of it, keeping you up-to-date and giving you peace of mind.

Endnote

Technological advancements have significantly enhanced older adults’ quality of life. Consider investing in these crucial technologies to monitor your health or that of an elderly loved one.