ABSTRACT
Healthcare continuity and remote care are among the key components for tackling disease-related effects using technological solutions. People recovering from home need high-quality of care and timely monitoring, resembling hospital care. This study proposes the use of a new device for person - machine interaction for home monitoring. The system takes advantage of automatic interaction initiated by the device on detecting patients' symptoms and providing remote care in order to improve technology engagement features. The feasibility of the proposed system was tested in COVID-19 patients as a definitive case of stay-at-home care where the treatment depends on the current state of health and the severity of the symptoms. The study shows promising results in terms of usability. The vast majority of the answers are perceiving the system as useful (90.9%) and easy to use (95.5%) and the overall System Usability Score (SUS) of the system is 65.25. The system usage adherence was also promising for the quarantine period (on average 7.2 days) but dropped after that. However, the results from the clinical team interviews showed that there is a need for sufficient allocated time for clinicians to get acquainted with the system and for ED staff to explain the device to patients. © 2022 IEEE.
ABSTRACT
Background and aims: COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need of telemedicine and digital technologies, especially for the vulnerable elderly population with chronic conditions including dementia, in order to improve their accessibility to healthcare services and facilitate their living. As a part of the European SI4CARE Project, the aim of this study was to investigate the extent to which telemedicine and new technologies are currently used for the elderly with dementia in the Adrion Region. Methods: Data were collected through e-questionnaires regarding the use of telemedicine and digital technologies for the elderly with dementia, which were anonymously administered during 02/2021-05/2021 to elderly and healthcare stakeholder providers (hospitals, dementia associations, institutions, policy makers) in Italy (Calabria), Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Greece and Serbia. Rating was from not at all to extremely. Results: The number of the interviewees was 495 elderly people and 183 stakeholders. The majority of all stakeholders (46-100%) and elderly (60-100%) indicated that it was not at all easy for an elderly person with dementia to be examined via telemedicine, especially in Serbia and Italy. Most participants revealed that digital technologies were not at all being used to facilitate the living of the elderly with dementia in all countries. Conclusion: Telemedicine and digital technologies have not been adequately incorporated in healthcare services for the elderly with dementia in the Adrion Region. Major attempts are needed for their successful integration especially in remote areas, in order to facilitate daily living and improve the accessibility to healthcare services of these patients. (Figure Presented).