Caring + Tech: Nursing Homes Of The Future

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In 2020, just 19% of Americans say nursing home make seniors “better off”

  • Yet, 1 in 3 will need nursing home care at some point in their lifetime
  • How will nursing homes move forward in the digital age?

Nursing Homes Are At A Tipping Point

  • In 2030, the first of 77 million Baby Boomers will reach 85
    • 3 in 4 will need high-level, long-term care
    • By 2034, seniors will outnumber children for the first time in U.S. history
  • Nursing Homes Are Necessary
    • More than 1.3 million Americans live in a nursing home
    • Many have no other option, most residents 
      • Can’t independently care for themselves 
      • Lack the resources to pursue other options
      • Don’t have family that can take them in
    • Many nursing home residents need help with 2+ daily tasks
      • At least 25% of nursing home residents have
        • Alzheimer disease
        • Other dementias
        • Arthritis
        • Heart disease
        • Hypertension
    • On average, residents receive 4 hours of personalized nursing care each day
  • The Problem Of Social Isolation
    • 18% of suicide deaths are seniors — more than any other age group
    • Loneliness Increases Health Risks
      • Mortality: +400%
      • Hospitalization: +68%
      • ER visit: +57%
      • Dementia: +50%
      • Stroke: +32%
      • Heart disease: +29%
    • Medicare spends $6.7 billion more each year on seniors who are social isolated than those with a social support system
    • In 40% of seniors, moving away from friends, routines, and familiar surroundings leads to depression
      • BUT, a high-quality nursing home provides social support as well as medical care

Today, nursing homes have been the most affected by COVID-19 — In the U.S., nursing home residents and staff make up nearly 25% of coronavirus deaths ( as of September 2020)

Health Isn’t The Only Goal

  • Are Nursing Homes Providing Quality Care?
    • Coronavirus outbreaks among nursing home residents aren’t associated with resident demographics or local infection rates
      • BUT, the likelihood of an outbreak varies with quality of care*
        • Compared to 1 star facilities
          • 2-3 star facilities: 87% lower risk
          • 4-5 stars facilities: 94% lower risk 
    • Amidst the pandemic, nursing home residents have been 
      • Transferred to new facilities for infection control
      • Quarantined within their rooms to prevent exposure
      • Prevented from having visits with family and friends
    • Before COVID-19, 55% of nursing home residents said they didn’t see enough of their families
      • Isolation must be balanced with the need to for mobility and social contact
    • “This pandemic has made us painfully aware that we can’t ignore our most vulnerable people. Americans always respond to a crisis. And there is hope that, with innovative ideas and bold actions, they will again.” — Elaine Ryan, Vice President of Government Affairs for State Advocacy at AARP
  • Nursing Homes Not Institutions
    • “Because nursing homes are places to live, in addition to clinical settings, quality of life is salient . . . Health care needs might be met at the expense of drastically changing someone’s daily life and routines for the worse. The challenge is to pay attention to quality of life as an outcome in itself, and see how health care may be related to quality of life.” — Rosalie Kane, Ph.D., Professor of Health Policy & Management at the University of Minnesota
  • Nursing Homes Must Adapt

“The first value is that people are the bosses of their own lives” — Hans Becker,  Former CEO of Humanitas

  • Independence: Enabling residents to direct their care and daily activities — and empowering them to return home
  • Environment: Creating home-like living environments with privacy, independence, and personal touches
  • Community: Fostering close relationships among residents, their families, and healthcare staff
  • Collaboration: Promoting collaborative decision making and empowering staff to respond to residents’ needs and desires
  • Improvement: Practicing continuous quality improvement and embracing new technologies

New healthcare tech can help seniors recover their independence and return home

Technology For Better Elder Care

  • Cutting Edge Tech
    • Dialyze Direct: In-house dialysis for nursing home residents
      • Gentler, more frequent treatments for better results
        • 94% reduction in vascular infections
        • 65% reduction in dialysis-related hospitalizations
        • Patient recovery time reduced to 1 hour
      • Coordinated kidney care: dialysis, diet, and social support
    • VOCSN Ventilators: The only multifunction ventilator
      • Combines ventilator, oxygen, suction, nebulizer, and cough functions
        • Small, lightweight, and easy to carry
        • Maintain freedom with 9 hour battery
        • Quiet and discrete breathing therapy
      • Easily transition from hospital to nursing home to home care
    • Solo-Step: Rehabilitation harness helps restore independent mobility
      • Builds patients confidence to help them reach their next milestone
        • Eliminates fear of falling down
        • Help patients challenge themselves
        • Prevents fall related injuries
      • Gets measurable results in less time
  • Tech Of The Future
    • Neuro Rehab VR
      • Design to help patients recover from stroke and traumatic brain injuries
      • Physical therapy programs customizable for each patient’s need
      • Gamified experience motivates patients  for faster recovery 
    • The Kidney Project
      • Implantable artificial kidney would free patients from dialysis
      • Designed to perform kidney functions dialysis can’t replace
      • Will costs less than one-third the cost of chronic dialysis
    • Lifesprk: Electronic Life Record
      • Algorithms based on analysis of social, economic, and health factors
      • Analyzes individual medical profile to create a unique predictive model
      • Used to prescribe preventative, in-home, holistic healthcare  

Care with compassion. Tech for independence. 

Sources:
https://www.elderlawanswers.com/new-survey-examines-the-public39s-views-of-nursing-homes-4593
https://www.kff.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/infographic-medicaid_s-role-in-nursing-home-care-thumbnail.png
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https://www.dialyzedirect.com/
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https://solostep.com/benefits/benefits-for-the-facility/
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https://pharmacy.ucsf.edu/news/2020/10/bioartificial-kidney-aims-mimic-natural-kidney-function-1-million-grant-john-marcia
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https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6937a5.htm
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https://www.cdc.gov/aging/publications/features/lonely-older-adults.html