The advances being made in applicable care home technology are extremely exciting, but more than that, innovation must be used to help alleviate a crisis that is only set to worsen, says Kirk Taylor, head of development at Kajima Partnerships
It is undeniable that the need for elderly care homes is only set to increase, in turn stretching the care sector workforce and available resources even further. Already, about 18 per cent of the UK population is aged 65 or over and that figure is expected to grow to more than 20 per cent by 2027, according to the Office for National Statistics.1
However, the exciting news is that technology will have an important role in the future of the care sector as it helps to improve the quality of life of care home residents, while keeping costs down through enhanced efficiency. In particular, ‘smart’ technology built into facilities will help to enhance resident independence, thereby enabling care staff to focus on the most important health issues.
In addition, intelligent robots or ‘robocare’ may help to alleviate the loneliness that many older people experience and the growing market for ‘elderly friendly’ technology is pushing innovation towards this age group so that they are able to stay connected to the rest of the world.
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