The age profile of the developed world is changing very rapidly. As a society, we are becoming older. At the same time, there are fewer young people entering the workforce to pay the taxes to fund social care of the elderly. The situation has been called "an upcoming catastrophe". The fact that people are living longer is good news, however, and with the right technology we can enable people to live longer, independently, in their own homes – thereby taking full advantage of their increased longevity.
Cost effective solutions for elderly care
In Britain alone, social care currently costs some £16 billion annually. This will rise, as more people become old, to unsustainable levels unless we apply new solutions to support people better and more efficiently to continue happy independent lives in their own homes.
The answer is to enable people to remain safely in their own homes for longer. One option is to equip people with an alarm that they wear or carry. If they fall, goes the argument, they can summon remote help - and providing a central source of such help is far less expensive than having to provide 24 hour care in a hospital or residential home.
The 'pendant' approach, however, has several disadvantages. They are unpopular with wearers, who often take them off. They are useless if the user becomes unconscious and they are unsuitable for people with dementia.
A better solution is to provide each person with unobtrusive infrared sensors in the rooms of their home. These monitor movement - or the lack of it. Linking the sensors to an intelligent system can determine if any unusual event occurs. If a person remains motionless on the floor during the afternoon, for example, the system can flag this as suspicious, and trigger a phone call or a visit. If a person remains motionless in the bedroom during the night, however, this would be regarded as normal.
Unlike expensive and intrusive video monitors, the low-definition Irisys infrared arrays maintain the person's privacy. They can also be linked to increasingly common, cost-effective intelligent buildings technology, perhaps turning on a light when a person enters a room to reduce the risk of tripping or guide them to the bathroom in darkness.
Early diagnosis of clinical conditions
Research Irisys has conducted with Manchester Metropolitan University also suggests that the smart infrared technology may provide early warning of clinical conditions such as dementia by analysing a person's behaviour – for example pacing patterns. In the medium term this could allow earlier diagnosis and a potentially more effective treatment regime.
Assisted Living Summary
- Infrared technology protects the privacy of the individual.
- Thermal detection allows essential nocturnal monitoring in complete darkness.
- No tag or pendant need be worn and no user action whatsoever is required.
- Rich information allows analysis of use of space, wellbeing, decline and recovery.
- This can be made available to health professionals such as Occupational Therapists.
- Sensors can be deployed throughout the home, including critical locations such as bedrooms and bathrooms. These are not only sensitive areas, but are also where most falls occur.
- Irisys automated reasoning and alerting expertise will enable authorities to scale-up care provision far more efficiently to meet demand.