Memory loss is a major concern among elderly individuals and care managers, as this prevalent medical issue is one of the primary reasons that members of this population require monitoring. A person may be physically able to care for themselves in their own home, but if they suffer from memory lapses, they may not take the medication they need to treat chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease.
Visual reminders have long been used as elderly home care tools to ensure that individuals in this age group have a backup system in place if they must follow a strict schedule regarding their medication. And, according to a February study from the University of Toronto, this method may also take advantage of a mode of memory retention that is unique to older minds.
The researchers investigated the benefits of a practice called "distracted learning," which involves the use of visual cues that are essentially supplementary to a primary image or piece of information. They found that people over the age of 60 are better able to process "relevant and irrelevant information" at once, and their recollection of details that were presented as secondary – along the margin of a list of words they were asked to study – was actually greater than that of younger participants.
So, what does this discovery mean for in-home elderly care?
"While older adults are watching television or playing a game on a tablet, boosting memory for goals […] could be accomplished by something as simple as running a stream of target information across the bottom of their tablet or TV," a press release from the university states.
At Independa, we provide a solution that caters directly to this ability. Our home care applications – including the Caregiver Web App – allow care givers to set up smart schedules and medical reminders that will appear on the recipients' LG television screen. The individual will then be prompted to respond to these directives so their remote care managers know that their instructions have been followed.
To learn more about how our care technologies can help the elderly individuals in your care age comfortably – whether from an assisted living community or the comfort of their own home, contact us through our convenient online form today.
