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How Technology Can Help Retirees Age in Place

Older adults may not have grown up with the internet or smartphones, but this generation of retirees is increasingly embracing tech solutions to help them age in place.

Spurred on by the need to connect during the pandemic, older adults are finding more uses for technology to live safely and socially, making it easier to remain in the home and for loved ones to ensure their well-being.

“Technology has an array of uses that are really going to help people retire in almost a different way,” says Kathleen Cameron, senior director of the National Council on Aging’s Center for Healthy Aging.

For family members, “technology is the one thing that has changed caregiving the most,” says Amy Goyer, a caregiving expert with AARP.

Tech Solutions for Retirees
Beyond Zoom and other forms of video calling, technology is providing solutions ranging from remote health monitoring to financial tracking and automatic stove switches.
Smart homes incorporate the ability to remotely answer doors, turn on lights, control temperature, play music, and contact loved ones. Technology is also allowing older adults to stay employed remotely, to socialize, learn, and experience travel from the comfort and safety of their homes.

Robotic pets can provide companionship and a sense of purpose. Virtual reality helps loved ones understand how older people experience life. Even robotic vacuum cleaners can take one chore off their to-do list.

While integrated, all-encompassing age-in-place systems have yet to be created, experts say the technology continues to evolve. The future could include robotic solutions to help with daily living tasks and potential uses for virtual reality, which has shown promise for dementia patients.

Saudia Gajadhar, a spokeswoman for Comfort Keepers, works at the Irvine, California, home care company’s headquarters but cares for her own father in Florida using remote technology. Gajadhar’s father is 89, she says, and it’s been a struggle helping him to learn how to use things like videoconferencing.

During the pandemic, she was able to connect with her father after talking him through how to do video conferencing each time. But he eventually gave up and wouldn’t use Zoom anymore. She hired a caregiver to work with him, and he’s now able to Zoom again with that help. She says one way of persuading him to adapt is to tell him different technologies will help him stay independent in his home.

“Technology is absolutely going to help people stay in their homes longer for multiple reasons,” Goyer says. “To stay in your home and be as active as possible, you need to have physical activity and mental stimulation, socialization. You need to take care of your health, and you need to be safe in your home. Technology can address all of those things.”

Tech That Helps Retirees' Safety
Caregivers who don’t reside with their older loved ones may use technology to keep track of their well-being. Even those who live in the same home need to be able to leave knowing they would be alerted in an emergency. While cameras could serve this purpose, the loss of privacy is an issue that no one wants to be watched in their own homes.

Other options abound. Many smartwatches, for example, can detect when the wearer falls and can send alerts. Goyer notes that not everyone wants to wear a device or can remember to charge it, and for them, there are radar detection monitors that can be mounted on a wall and send for help in the event of a fall.

Video doorbells and digital locks also enable caregivers to monitor visitors and remotely ensure people who need to get inside are allowed in, while others are kept away.

“If you have someone coming in to help your mother with bathing three days a week, but she is not able to hear the doorbell or might be asleep and miss the person, then you can give them a code to get into the house and set it up,” Goyer says.

Another option is a system that includes motion sensors, which allow monitoring a loved one’s movements around the home, checking that they’re up and out of bed and haven't fallen. “We had a system like that for my boyfriend's mom, who just passed,” Goyer says. “It was an integrated system that had a communications hub.” If the mother didn’t answer her phone, Goyer says, her family could talk to her through a speaker that was connected to the hub. “My boyfriend would get a report, ‘Mom is up and in the bathroom,’ or something like that.”

Some aspects of home maintenance can be addressed through technology. For example, an older person may not wish to climb stairs to go to the basement, but still many need to know if there is a water leak. There are monitors for that, providing peace of mind and safety.

Another danger is leaving the stove on, particularly when a person has some cognitive decline. Goyer says there are monitors for stoves and microwaves that can automatically turn them off when they’re left on unattended for too long. One is called iGuard Stove, and it can be purchased for about $500 at stores, including Best Buy, which can also arrange installation and setup.

Looking Ahead at Tech for Retirees
It’s wise to start incorporating tech into life before it’s needed, so when the need arises, it’s not a struggle to learn. And tech is expected to become more of a part of retirement over time and as older people continue to adapt.

While conventional wisdom says older people spurn technology, surveys show the gap in use is narrowing between generations. According to Gallup, 61% of those 65 and older owned smartphones in 2022, compared with 96% of those ages 18 to 29, a difference of 35 percentage points. That gap was 53 points 10 years earlier. Gallup also found 83% of those 50 to 64 own smartphones, suggesting older people’s technology use will continue to increase as the population ages.

— Source: Kiplinger