A Systematic Review of Proactive Health Management and Empowerment for Senior Citizens

As a society, the developments that have been made in technology truly have revolutionized the way we go about our livelihood. For the older generation, the implementation of technology in regards to their health can play a major role. Telehealth technology has the ability to increase the quality of care by managing chronic diseases and preventing hospitalization. The personal attention keeps patients engaged as they are educated on their daily health, and more importantly reducing healthcare costs with evidence based interventions. This research has the ability to assist those with large disparities in income; after all, the patients come from various socioeconomic backgrounds. This research study has aimed to implement a cost-effective delivery method personalized to individual needs in their own living setting. The system developed is user-friendly and according to data, has increased the quality of living. This is a system which monitors and identifies a number of participants having a leading chronic disease, or an ongoing health condition. During the timeframe of 6 months, the pilot was designed to collect each patient's data, specifically blood pressure, oxygen levels and weight. We then set up a parameter which consisted of their current health conditions, According to the 2010 census, seniors are the fastest growing population in the world and the need for telehealth is greater than ever. The quality of care through telehealth studies revealed that 88 % of participants found that there was a benefit to having a remote nurse. Bi-weekly assessments through Vital Care involved taking vitals which included measuring blood oxygen levels, taking blood pressure and weight. Of the bi-weekly assessments done by trained technicians, 92 % of the participants looked forward to their appointment, and 96 % of them would like the program to continue. The bi-weekly assessments also led to 80 % of participants learning more about their health conditions and overall 71 % of participants had an increased awareness of their individual diet and nutrition. The end result of self-awareness by receiving bi-weekly updates became that 63 % of participants had self-reported health improvements and it helped 55 % of them cut back on hospitalizations. The data demonstrated statistically that a bi-weekly assessment of general health can lead to improved awareness on the current state of well-being. The results suggest that by educating seniors on their general health it can lead to improvements through cutbacks on hospitalizations by improving things within their control (ex: nutrition and diet).