Search

A new study conducted by researchers at Queensland University of Technology in Australia aims to improve mental health practices and outcomes for individuals living in residential aged care (RAC) facilities. The study will involve a two-stage sequential and mixed methods codesign methodology, including qualitative interviews and focus groups with residents, family/care partners, and RAC staff. The findings of the study will be published in peer-reviewed journals and disseminated through various channels. The research aims to develop a mental health performance indicator tool for use in Australian RAC facilities. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted by the University of Sanya explores the current situation and challenges of community home nursing services in the Internet+ era. The researchers developed a smart community home care system using Internet of Things (IoT) technology, which includes sensors and alarms to monitor the posture and vital signs of older adults and issue alerts in case of falls. An empirical study was conducted to analyze the satisfaction and perceived importance of the system among elderly users, and the results showed high levels of satisfaction and perceived importance. The study concludes that the smart community home care system is feasible and effective in improving the personal safety of older people. [Extracted from the article]

A report from investigators at York University in Toronto, Canada, examines the issue of corporate accountability in for-profit care homes for the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research highlights how these care homes continued to pay bonuses to executives and dividends to investors while COVID-related deaths increased. The study explores the healthcare and financial governance systems in the industry and argues that they work together to dissipate corporate accountability, creating a fragmented and inadequate system. The researchers suggest that this division within the moral community allows corporations to be seen as accountable entities. [Extracted from the article]

New research from Flinders University suggests that falls in residential aged care homes can be prevented through regular exercise and personalized falls prevention plans. Falls in older adults cost Australia's health systems $2.5 billion annually, with 130,000 older Australians hospitalized and 5,000 dying from falls each year. The research emphasizes the importance of exercise programs tailored to individual abilities and preferences, as well as conducting individual falls risk assessments to inform interventions. The findings have informed the upcoming Australian Falls prevention guidelines and highlight the need for ongoing falls prevention programs in aged care homes. [Extracted from the article]

A new report from researchers at Jiangsu University explores the acceptance of institutional care among rural elderly people in Shandong Province, China. The study found that only 17.71% of respondents expressed willingness to receive services from elderly care institutions. Factors such as education level, trust in elderly care institutions, support from adult children, number of children, understanding of elderly care institutions, neighbors' choices of elderly care methods, and ability to contribute to the family all influenced the decision to receive nursing services. The research suggests strengthening spiritual and cultural construction, government guidance of public opinion, and increased pension subsidies to reduce the burden of national elderly care. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the recent controversy surrounding Qantas upgrades for parliamentarians, with Education Minister Jason Clare and Nationals' Bridget McKenzie under scrutiny. Calls for new rules around upgrades for personal travel by MPs are being made, including a ban on upgrades and ministers declining them for official travel. The article also touches on other political issues such as the swearing-in of Senator Lidia Thorpe and upcoming legislation on misinformation, NBN ownership, aged care reforms, and student debt reduction. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted by researchers from Sejong University in Seoul, South Korea, explores the need for innovative approaches to elderly care systems. The study proposes an Edge Computational Intelligence (ECI)-based haptic-driven ECI-TeleCaring system that utilizes Software-Defined Network (SDN) and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) to reduce latency and enhance responsiveness. The system incorporates dual Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) models for real-time location-aware activity prediction. The results of the simulation demonstrate the system's proficiency in managing data transmission in real-time. The proposed system serves as a testbed for implementing and managing elder telecaring services, facilitating real-time monitoring of technological parameters and data exchange between human operators and telerobots. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted by researchers at Ningbo University in China examined the social sustainability of institutional care for the elderly in China. The study found that there are several problems related to social sustainability in the institutional care environment, including concerns about employee health and safety, unequal treatment of employees, and the unmet psychological, physical, and safety needs of the elderly. The researchers concluded that these findings can help inform government departments and investors in creating a socially sustainable institutional care environment and provide valuable insights for the elderly and their relatives in choosing appropriate care institutions. The full study can be accessed for free online. [Extracted from the article]

Griffith University researchers have developed an automated screening tool called AutoMal to diagnose malnutrition in Australian aged care homes. Malnutrition is a prevalent issue in these facilities, with an estimated 40-60% of residents being diagnosed as malnourished. AutoMal measures BMI and weight change over six months to calculate the probability of malnutrition. The tool is designed to be intuitive and requires fewer resources than existing screening methods, making it more accessible and efficient. Implementing AutoMal could increase accountability and enable quick nutritional intervention for residents. [Extracted from the article]

A study conducted by the Nanjing Institute of Technology in China aims to design a rehabilitation medical product system for intelligent elderly care environments. The research focuses on enhancing the efficiency of rehabilitation training for older adults by integrating intelligent technologies and user-centered design principles. The proposed solutions address the unique rehabilitation challenges faced by the elderly, with the goal of improving the quality of care and support in intelligent elderly care apartments. The study provides practical and feasible strategies for meeting the healthcare requirements specific to elderly care settings. [Extracted from the article]

Researchers at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology in Japan have published a report on engineering solutions for monitoring the activities of daily living (ADL) and healthcare data of elderly individuals. The researchers propose a data gathering system model for elderly care in network deficient environments, such as rural or remote areas. The system utilizes autonomous device-to-device (D2D) communications and ad hoc D2D links to collect sensor data without relying on existing network infrastructures. Field trials in a mountainous village confirmed the feasibility and usefulness of the proposed system for gathering ADL sensor data in network deficient environments. [Extracted from the article]

A report from RWTH Aachen University discusses the acceptance of telemedicine in nursing homes. The study aimed to reduce unnecessary hospitalizations of geriatric patients and support care personnel in medically uncertain situations. The research found positive evaluations of telemedical consultations in both pre- and post-implementation evaluations, with post-evaluations showing a lower evaluation of perceived barriers. The study provides insights for guidelines and recommendations on the communication and information of telemedical applications, considering the needs and wishes of care personnel as a central user group. [Extracted from the article]

A Florida eldercare facility that leverages Uniguest technology and digital signage in eldercare has been featured in "The Human Component," a BBC StoryWorks series presented by the Consumer Technology Association, according to a press release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent systematic review conducted by researchers at Griffith University examined the evidence relating to consumer-directed care (CDC) in the aged care environment. CDC aims to empower aged care recipients by providing them with choice and flexibility in their care. The review identified six themes that emerged from the literature, including informed choice, policy, and know me, include me. The researchers found that authentic consumer choice requires collaboratively designed care plans and the cultivation of inclusive and transparent environments. Providers who have embraced CDC principles have enhanced person-centered care and consumer experience. [Extracted from the article]

A new report from Griffith University discusses the evolving role of aged care managers in Australia. The research highlights how these roles have shifted from focusing solely on clinical skills to encompassing governance, business, facilities, and service management skills. This change is in response to findings from the 2021 Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and the 2022 NSW Parliamentary Committee report, which identified workforce issues and the need for improved governance and management. The study identifies five main competencies for aged care managers: interpersonal communication, organizational and time management, quality improvement, business development, and leadership and human resources. These competencies align with the revised Australasian College of Health Service Management competency domains. [Extracted from the article]

A new report from researchers at Hunan Agricultural University discusses the measurement of coupling and coordinated development between China's internet and elderly care services, as well as the influencing factors. The study found that while the coupling and coordination between the internet and elderly care services is still in its early stages, there is potential for future development. Factors such as government management ability, financial support, scientific and technological investment, and the level of innovation were found to impact the integration of the internet and elderly care services. The researchers suggest that understanding the current situation and development space of this integration, as well as considering influencing factors, can help promote a more coordinated and sustainable development of internet and elderly care services in China. [Extracted from the article]

A researcher from Beijing Normal University has published a study analyzing China's smart elderly care service policy. The study uses a three-dimensional framework to analyze 126 policies from 2012 to 2022. The research finds that there is uneven distribution of policy objectives, imbalanced structure of policy tools, and varying support strength in the value chains. The study suggests the need for balanced development of elderly needs, complementarity of policy tools, systematization of value chains, and improved fitting between policy objectives, tools, and value chains. [Extracted from the article]

A study conducted by researchers at Ghent University-imec explores the detection of Activities of Daily Living (ADL) in elderly care using smartphone data and ambient sensors. The researchers developed a novel approach that utilizes a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model to detect multiple activities that occur simultaneously. The study found that using smartphone data alone provides satisfactory results for ADL detection, but incorporating ambient sensors improves accuracy by 7% and 8% on average. The dataset used in the study is openly available for further research and analysis. [Extracted from the article]

Researchers from the Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan have developed a new approach called EmbedHDP to improve the evaluation of sentence suggestions in nursing care record applications. The goal of this approach is to align the evaluation metric with human evaluators who are caregivers. The researchers found that EmbedHDP outperformed other evaluation models, achieving a coefficient score of 61%. This research has important implications for improving the quality of patient care in nursing and elderly care settings. [Extracted from the article]

A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Jyvaskyla in Finland explores the concept of attunement in dementia care. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the temporal experiences of individuals with dementia and the need for care professionals to enter into their alter-temporal experience. The researchers argue that attunement, which involves understanding dementia time and employing receptive and expressive practices, is crucial for providing effective dementia care. The study highlights the limitations of temporal discordance in attunement. [Extracted from the article]

A recent research study conducted by Trondheim University Hospital in Norway examined the impact of excess demand for elderly care on patient outcomes. The study found that discharging elderly patients from the hospital to municipalities with excess demand resulted in a slightly elevated mortality rate, particularly in small municipalities. However, there was no significant effect on subsequent healthcare use or costs. The study suggests that more research is needed to better understand how excess demand for elderly care influences patient outcomes. [Extracted from the article]

A report from Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University discusses the care needs of the elderly in China's elderly care institutions. The research collected and synthesized literature on the topic, finding that the top primary care needs of the elderly included mental/psychological, tranquility/care, living/environmental, medical treatment, and preventive healthcare. The top secondary care needs included room/laundry/cleaning, psychological comfort and nursing, end-of-life care, disease diagnosis and treatment, and physical examination. The research concludes that the health needs of older people in China are diverse and primarily focus on mental/psychological well-being, tranquility/care, living/environmental conditions, pharmacotherapy, and preventive healthcare. [Extracted from the article]