Technology and Caregiving: Emerging Interventions and Directions for Research

Abstract An array of technology-based interventions has increasingly become available to support family caregivers, primarily focusing on health and well-being, social isolation, financial, and psychological support. More recently the emergence of new technologies such as mobile and cloud, robotics, connected sensors, virtual/augmented/mixed reality, voice, and the evermore ubiquitous tools supported by advanced data analytics, coupled with the integration of multiple technologies through platform solutions, have opened a new era of technology-enabled interventions that can empower and support family caregivers. This paper proposes a conceptual framework for identifying and addressing the challenges that may need to be overcome to effectively apply technology-enabled solutions for family caregivers. The paper identifies a number of challenges that either moderate or mediate the full use of technologies for the benefit of caregivers. The challenges include issues related to equity, inclusion, and access; ethical concerns related to privacy and security; political and regulatory factors affecting interoperability and lack of standards; inclusive/human-centric design and issues; and inherent economic and distribution channel difficulties. The paper concludes with a summary of research questions and issues that form a framework for global research priorities.

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Clinical trials — the personal perspective of the research physician?

Annals of the Russian academy of medical sciences ◽

10.15690/vramn1356 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 75 (3) ◽

pp. 256-263

Author(s):

Maria Y. Egorova ◽

Irina A. Shuvalova ◽

Olga I. Zvonareva ◽

Igor D. Pimenov ◽

Olga S. Kobyakova ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clinical Trials ◽

Medical Care ◽

New Technologies ◽

Healthcare Providers ◽

Study Drug ◽

Well Being ◽

Personal Perspective ◽

Public And Private ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

To Receive

Background. The organization of clinical trials (CTs) requires the participation and coordination of healthcare providers, patients, public and private parties. Obstacles to the participation of any of these groups pose a risk of lowering the potential for the implementation of CTs. Researchers are a key human resource in conducting of CT. Their motivation for participation can have a significant impact on the recruitment and retention of patients, on the quality of the data collected, which determines the overall outcome of the study. Aims to assess the factors affecting the inclusion of Russian physicians-researchers in CT, and to determine their role in relations with patients-participants. Materials and methods. The study was organized as a part of the Russian multicenter face-to-face study. A survey was conducted of researchers from 10 cities of Russia (20172018). The participation in the survey for doctors was anonymous and voluntary. Results. The study involved 78 respondents. Most research doctors highly value the importance of research for science (4,84 0,39), society (4,67 0,46) and slightly lower for participating patients (4,44 0,61). The expectations of medical researchers are related to improving their financial situation and attaining new experience (n = 14; 18,18%). However, the opportunity to work with new technologies of treatment and diagnosis (n = 41; 52,56%) acted as a motivating factor. According to the questionnaire, the vast majority of research doctors (n = 29; 37,18%) believe that the main reason for patients to participate in CT is to receive quality and free medical care. The most significant obstacle to the inclusion of participants in CT was the side effects of the study drug (n = 38; 48,71%). Conclusions. The potential of clinical researchers in Russia is very high. The patient-participant acts for the research doctor as the subject of the study, and not the object, so the well-being of the patient is not indifferent to the doctor. However, the features of the functioning of our health care system form the motivation of doctors-researchers (additional earnings, professional self-development) and the way they perceive the motivation of patients (CT as an opportunity to receive quality medical care).

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Factors Affecting the Level of Depression and Life Satisfaction of Family Caregivers of Frail Older People in Korea

Social Policy and Society ◽

10.1017/s1474746406003071 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 399-408 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Soo Young Kim ◽

So Young Min

Keyword(s):

Older People ◽

Family Caregivers ◽

Well Being ◽

Family Carers ◽

Frail Older People ◽

Family Structures ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Aged Society ◽

Major Factors

South Korea is rapidly becoming an aged society and with changing family structures there is increasing concern about the care of older people. This paper considers the well being of family carers of older people who suffer from dementia or a stroke. One hundred and sixty eight family caregivers, who were caring for elderly relatives, were selected and the major factors affecting their psychological well-being and proposals to improve their quality of life are identified and discussed.

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A Tutorial for an Interactive Narrative Simulation for Alzheimer’s Disease’s Caregivers: Development and Evaluation

Studies in Health Technology and Informatics - Public Health and Informatics ◽

10.3233/shti210300 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Emilie Lettry ◽

Frederic Ehrler ◽

Nicolas Szilas

Keyword(s):

Family Caregivers ◽

New Technologies ◽

Interactive Narrative ◽

Sensitive Information ◽

Training Environment ◽

Context Sensitive ◽

Narrative Simulation ◽

Visual Element ◽

Difficult Situations ◽

Support Family

Alzheimer Care Trainer (ACT) is an interactive narrative simulation for caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. It aims to support family caregivers by letting them practice difficult situations of daily life in a training environment. In order to ensure its accessibility to its target audience, which may be unfamiliar with new technologies, we have created a tutorial. The aim of the tutorial is to teach users the main mechanics of the simulation. Considered to be an introductory level to ACT, it is built in 2 parts, a dirigiste first part and an exploratory, second part. Several tutorial elements, such as context-sensitive information or a help page, have been integrated. The evaluation of the tutorial by 14 participants revealed that interaction mechanics were well understood although the state of the visual element remains confusing. Generated positive affects were stronger than the negative ones and most of the participants were confident to play the game after the tutorial. Ensuring accessibility to all populations is essential especially when targeting seniors. A well-conceived tutorial has the potential to familiarize users with our intervention, reducing the risk of excluding people that could benefit from it.

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Helping Caregivers to be Ready, Willing, Able, and Healthy

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.2399 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 687-687

Author(s):

Robyn Golden ◽

Vikki Rompala ◽

Ellen Carbonell

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Family Caregivers ◽

Systems Approach ◽

Well Being ◽

Caregiver Health ◽

Inpatient Settings ◽

Care Situation ◽

Change Framework ◽

Mental And Physical Health ◽

Support Family

Abstract Given extended life expectancy, family caregivers are needed to provide care for older adults at home. Research has documented the deleterious effects of caregiving on mental and physical health for many. The Caregiver Health and Well-Being Initiative is a systems approach to support family caregivers of older adults by standardizing processes for identifying caregivers in ambulatory and inpatient settings, assessing caregivers’ needs, and providing relevant services and resources, including caregiver health services, a Teach Back clinic for skills development, and extended goals of care conversations. N=104 caregivers have completed assessments. Participants reported the following at baseline: depressive symptoms (54%); anxiety symptoms (69%); health being affected by the care situation (59%); financial situation decreasing (58%); feeling torn between demands of their family and demands of care (63%); and some feelings of burden from caregiving (97%). Intervention components will be discussed along with a larger systems change framework for implementation.

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The SWIMS CD-ROM Pilot: Using Community Development Principles and Technologies of the Information Society to Address Identified

10.28945/2770 ◽

2004 ◽

Author(s):

Daniel Teghe ◽

Bruce A. Knight ◽

Cecily Knight

Keyword(s):

Community Development ◽

Information Society ◽

New Technologies ◽

Well Being ◽

Pilot Project ◽

Informational Needs ◽

Cd Rom ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Education Professionals ◽

The Social

In this paper we describe a pilot project to develop and assess the potential of CD-ROM based resources to address the identified informational needs of a community of education professionals. We focus on the development process, although we also briefly describe the project evaluation and its results. The context in which the pilot was developed and implemented was the Social Well-being in Mackay Schools Program, in which a model was being developed to address issues of young people presenting ‘at risk’ within educational settings. The development and distribution of the CD-ROM was not an easy or straightforward task, requiring extensive research and community consultation. It also required drawing on theoretical and methodological insights from across disciplines (especially from Community Development and Education) to develop a contextually relevant understanding of the factors affecting the informational needs of the community, and of the ways in which the process of addressing these needs might lead to the empowerment of its members. The ease with which the relevant technologies were accessed and used by researchers and community workers who possessed no formal or advanced training in the use of ICTs indicated that the ‘new’ technologies can readily complement and assist in community development, thus giving impetus to the thesis that new forms of empowerment are possible because of the advent of the Information Society.

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Family Caregivers’ Psychosocial Well-being in the Context of the Great Recession

The International Journal of Aging and Human Development ◽

10.1177/00914150211037650 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 009141502110376

Author(s):

Barbara T. Hodgdon ◽

Jen D. Wong

Keyword(s):

Family Caregivers ◽

Great Recession ◽

Well Being ◽

The United States ◽

Life Course Perspective ◽

The Great Recession ◽

Multigenerational Households ◽

Financial Challenges ◽

The Life Course ◽

Support Family

The economic instability of the Great Recession contributed to a rise in multigenerational households as more individuals took on unanticipated care responsibilities for older family members while navigating financial uncertainties. Guided by the life course perspective, this study compared the psychological and social well-being of family caregivers and examined the moderating influences of financial challenges experienced during the Great Recession. Filial and sandwiched caregivers ( N = 138; Mage = 52.80; SDage = 11.25) from the Refresher Cohort of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) survey provided information on demographics, caregiving, financial challenges, and well-being. Findings from regression analyses showed that sandwiched caregivers exhibited lower environmental mastery and positive relations with others than filial caregivers ( p = .07). Moderation analyses showed that sandwiched caregivers with fewer than average financial challenges exhibited lower social actualization than the other family caregivers ( p = .01). Study findings underscore the need to support family caregivers’ psychosocial well-being as they navigate caregiving responsibilities and financial disruptions.

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