Phase IIB - Smart Eyewear Assistant for the Support of Seniors and their Caregivers in the Long-term Care Setting

摘要 解决迅速增长的对负担得起的、高质量的、长期的老年人护理的需求是，并将继续是 未来几十年医疗保健面临的最艰巨的挑战。与长期相关的成本- 对老年人的定期护理正在飙升。到2030年，社会保障、医疗保险和医疗补助的支出将 增长到联邦预算的近60%，这在很大程度上是由这种护理费用推动的。居家的长期护理 可能是控制这种护理的公共成本的潜在解决方案。超过90%的老年人和他们的 家庭更喜欢在家中进行长期护理，而不是机构护理。然而，不断变化的人口结构 由于更长的寿命和更低的出生率，导致可供照料的子女和孙辈更少 对于越来越多的老年人来说。65岁至74岁的人口增长预计将增加到 2020年为3280万人，2030年为3860万人。预计75岁至84岁的个人数量将达到30.1人 到2040年，全球人口将达到1410万，85岁及以上人口预计将达到1410万。这些人口结构的变化 家庭护理服务费用的增加进一步加剧了这一问题，而家庭护理服务的费用由 家庭成员。所有这些因素都可能而且确实会导致家庭和/或社会孤立的经济困难。 以及降低老年人的护理质量。 应用适当的技术是支持家庭和职业的最佳选择 照顾者在提供这种护理的同时控制成本。然而，任何技术解决方案都不能 在没有接受护理的老年人参与的情况下是可行的。不幸的是，目前的技术倾向于 用复杂的屏幕菜单恐吓老年人，用不适当的外形设计和/或 受到通信能力的限制，在以下情况下，通信能力不会延伸到家庭范围之外 老年人最容易受到紧急情况的影响。 我们的工作假设是蜂窝连接的移动通信和监控工具，其形式为 一副看起来很普通的眼镜，并配备完全语音激活的界面，可以 这些要求和这样做支持家庭和专业照顾者提供这种护理。

ABSTRACT Addressing the rapidly growing need for affordable, high-quality, long-term elder care is, and will remain, one of the most daunting challenges facing healthcare over the next several decades. The costs associated with long- term care for the elderly are skyrocketing. By 2030, spending for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will grow to almost 60% of the federal budget, driven largely by the cost of this care. Long-term care in the home may represent a potential solution to controlling the public cost of this care. Over 90% of seniors and their families prefer long-term care in the home rather than institutional care. However, changing demographics resulting from longer lifespans and lower birthrates result in fewer children and grandchildren available to care for an increasing number of elders. Population growth among those aged 65–74 are projected to increase to 32.8 million in 2020 and 38.6 million in 2030. The number of individuals aged 75–84 is expected to reach 30.1 million by 2040 and those aged 85 and older is expected to reach 14.1 million. These demographic changes are further exacerbated by the increasing cost of home care delivery, which is disproportionately borne by family members. All of these factors can and do lead to financial hardship for the family and/or social isolation and decreasing care quality for the elder. The application of appropriate technology presents the best option to support both family and professional caregivers in providing this care while keeping costs under control. However, no technical solution can be viable without the participation of the senior receiving the care. Unfortunately, current technology tends to intimidate elders with complex screen menus, stigmatize them with inappropriate form-factor designs and/or are limited by their communication capabilities, which do not extend outside of the confines of the home when the elder is most vulnerable to emergencies. Our working hypothesis is that a cellular-connected mobile communication and monitoring tool, in the form of an ordinary-looking pair of eyeglasses and equipped with an entirely voice-activated interface can address these requirements and in so doing support both family and professional caregivers in providing this care.