Garcia Reyes Elsy Paola, Kelly Ryan, Buchanan George, Waycott Jenny
School of Computing and Information Systems, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
JMIR Aging. 2023 Mar 21;6:e43197. doi: 10.2196/43197.
Many older adults now use technologies such as wearable devices and telehealth services to support their health and well-being while living independently at home. However, older adults vary in how they use these technologies, and there is a lack of knowledge regarding the motivations that influence their acceptance and use of health-related technologies in home environments.
This study aimed to understand the types of technologies that older adults use to support their health and the factors that motivate them to use their chosen technologies to support their health. In addition, we aimed to understand the factors that enable the effective use of technologies for health self-management and to identify the barriers that can negatively affect the adoption of technologies.
A total of 22 older adults participated in semistructured interviews regarding their experiences of using technologies for health self-management. Interview transcripts were analyzed through an in-depth thematic analysis.
The interviews revealed that a range of technologies, such as videoconferencing software, fitness trackers, and other devices, were being used by older adults to support their health. Interviews showed that participants were motivated to use technologies to monitor health issues, to stay active and connected, and to record and change their behavior in the light of foreseen risks related to their future health status. Enablers that facilitated the effective use of technologies include social and organizational influence, convenient access to health care and safety provided by the technology, and easy setup and low cost of the technology. Barriers include information overload and a sense of futility about future health decline; telehealth being an inadequate substitute for in-person consultation; concerns about trust related to privacy and accuracy; and technologies being stigmatizing, uncomfortable to use, expensive, and unfamiliar.
This study suggested that older adults were using a variety of technologies to prevent or prepare for future health decline, evidencing a resilient attitude toward health and aging. In addition, older adults were willing to continue using the technology when there was a perceived need. The enabler mentioned by most participants was the social and organizational influence that included health care staff, family, friends, and organizations. This analysis provides a better understanding of how older adults use technologies to support their health and can guide the provision of appropriate health technologies for them.
现在许多老年人使用可穿戴设备和远程医疗服务等技术，以便在独立居家生活时维持自身健康和福祉。然而，老年人在使用这些技术的方式上存在差异，而且对于影响他们在家庭环境中接受和使用健康相关技术的动机，人们了解不足。
本研究旨在了解老年人用于维持自身健康的技术类型，以及促使他们使用所选技术来维持健康的因素。此外，我们旨在了解有助于有效利用技术进行健康自我管理的因素，并识别可能对技术采用产生负面影响的障碍。
共有22名老年人参与了关于他们使用技术进行健康自我管理经历的半结构化访谈。通过深入的主题分析对访谈记录进行了分析。
访谈显示，老年人正在使用一系列技术，如视频会议软件、健身追踪器和其他设备来维持健康。访谈表明，参与者使用技术的动机是监测健康问题、保持活跃和保持联系，以及根据与未来健康状况相关的预期风险记录并改变自己的行为。促进技术有效使用的因素包括社会和组织影响、技术提供的便捷医疗保健和安全保障，以及技术易于设置和成本低廉。障碍包括信息过载和对未来健康衰退的徒劳感；远程医疗不足以替代面对面咨询；对与隐私和准确性相关的信任问题的担忧；以及技术带有污名化、使用起来不舒服、昂贵且不熟悉等问题。
本研究表明，老年人正在使用各种技术来预防或为未来的健康衰退做准备，这证明了他们对健康和衰老的坚韧态度。此外，当老年人认为有需要时，他们愿意继续使用该技术。大多数参与者提到的促进因素是包括医护人员、家人、朋友和组织在内的社会和组织影响。该分析有助于更好地理解老年人如何使用技术来维持健康，并可为他们提供合适的健康技术提供指导。
