Future of Pervasive Health Workshop

Research Article

Developing Health Technologies for Older Adults: Methodological and Ethical Considerations

  • @INPROCEEDINGS{10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263740,
        author={Beenish Chaudhry and Mayra Duarte and Dipanwita Dasgupta and Nitesh Chawla},
        title={Developing Health Technologies for Older Adults: Methodological and Ethical Considerations},
        proceedings={Future of Pervasive Health Workshop},
        publisher={ACM},
        proceedings_a={FUTURE OF PERVASIVE HEALTH WORKSHOP},
        year={2016},
        month={6},
        keywords={older adults tablets health pilot studies independent living facilities sustainable technologies low-income quality of life successful aging ethical methodological},
        doi={10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263740}
    }
    
  • Beenish Chaudhry
    Mayra Duarte
    Dipanwita Dasgupta
    Nitesh Chawla
    Year: 2016
    Developing Health Technologies for Older Adults: Methodological and Ethical Considerations
    FUTURE OF PERVASIVE HEALTH WORKSHOP
    EAI
    DOI: 10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263740
Beenish Chaudhry1,*, Mayra Duarte1, Dipanwita Dasgupta1, Nitesh Chawla1
  • 1: University of Notre Dame
*Contact email: bchaudhr@nd.edu

Abstract

Developing technologies for older adults is a growing area of research. We have designed and evaluated a tablet-based mobile application, seniorHealth, for low-income older adults residing in independent living facilities. Challenges, such as participants’ inexperience with technology, made it difficult to apply user-centered design (UCD) philosophy in developing seniorHealth. Participants’ difficulties in learning tablet skills raise ethical concerns around creating a technology-based solution the target population. Support groups, community connections and better understanding of older adults psychology may hold solutions to these ethical dilemmas, and should be explored further in defining a roadmap for implementing technology-based solutions for older adults.