Information that would have been obtained during a complete physical exam with lab tests a few years ago can now be identified after looking at one’s wrist. Plus, thanks to this wearable technology, you don’t have to wait a week to receive the news!
Today, one in five seniors own a smartwatch or fitness tracker. These devices offer a sense of independence and confidence as users go about their daily activities. And the information the watches and trackers store can be used by physicians to review and improve the health practices of their senior adult patients.
Best Wearable Technology Options for Seniors
Apple Watch.
Smartwatches like the Apple Watch help seniors adhere to their fitness goals as well as monitor their health. The Apple Watch is available in different models. Depending upon the model, along with monitoring activity levels, features include:
- A blood oxygen levels app
- An ECG app, which will check heart rhythm
- Notification if the wearer’s heart rate is too high or too low
- Irregular heart rhythm notification
- Sleep monitor
- Fall detection
- Emergency SOS capability
- Cellular available to make calls and reply to messages
Apple Watch users can also share this health data with loved ones or a care network.
Some insurance companies offer discounts for this watch.
Fitbit Watch.
The Fitbit Sense is Fitbit’s most advanced health smartwatch. Along with tracking physical activities, this wearable technology provides:
- A Daily Readiness Score, which reveals when you are best suited to exercise and when you should rest
- Information on exercise, sleep quality, and heart rate
- An electrodermal activity scan app, which senses the body’s response to stress and provides guided breathing sessions and mindfulness suggestions to help manage the stress
- A Health Metrics dashboard, which measures blood oxygen levels, breathing rate, heart rate variability, and skin temperature
- An ECG to assess your heart for heart rhythm irregularities
Omron.
Omron produces a wide variety of blood pressure monitoring devices. This includes a HeartGuide wristwatch, which provides real-time, clinically accurate blood pressure readings, thus enhancing the ability to immediately understand how lifestyle choices impact heart health.
The watch also measures physical activity, and tracks fitness and sleep habits. A HeartAdvisor app helps users to view trends over time, receive customized insights based on personal data, and provide important information for physician review.
UnaliWear Kaneaga Watch.
This is a voice-controlled smartwatch that features medication reminders and fall detection services. It does not require wearing a pendant, cellphone or base station to operate. Users can speak to emergency response operators 24/7/365.
The watch is waterproof, and spare batteries means the watch can be worn 24/7.
CarePredicts SeriesTempo 3 Watch.
The CarePredict Tempo Series 3 watch is touted as a device focused on “small changes in seniors that can indicate serious issues, before they happen.”
Sensors on this watch recognize, learn, and track daily activities, including exposure to UV light, which is an important consideration for seniors.
It has a variety of functions noting health and habit changes that make a senior more susceptible to falls, malnutrition, sleep issues, and depression. It also tracks where seniors typically spend their time in the home, and if their habits change over time.
The watch is always on due to a swappable battery system, and has a touch-to-talk button.
The watch is equipped with a CarePredict TouchPoint app, which helps family and friends stay informed about their loved one’s health and wellbeing.
Freedom 2.0.
A simplified smartwatch with life-saving capabilities provides daily task and medication reminders, and location tracking. It is designed with large icons, and touchscreen technology.
Users can store their emergency information at a Monitoring Center that operates 24/7.
The device is waterproof, provides local weather information, and two-way calling for assistance.
A customer-care portal is available that stores safety and health information.
Theora Connect Watch.
Maintaining the health and wellbeing of seniors with dementia has also received the benefit of wearable technology. Theora Connect is a purpose-built smartwatch for older adults, and the Theora Link smartphone app provides caregivers solutions for communications, situational awareness, and wandering in people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia.
Caregivers can place a call to their loved one that automatically connects without the senior needing to press a button to answer. Automatic text notifications are provided should the senior leave their usual locations.
The watch also measures daily steps, supplies weather information and has a lockdown mode to prevent wearers with cognitive issues from inadvertently changing its settings.
Optional accessories and software updates include a lockable clasp (with an option to require a tool to undo it), instant wandering alert and audio door alarm.
A second beacon is an option. This is a small, round object that can be attached to a surface and connects via Bluetooth to the Theora Connect watch. When the watch moves more than a certain distance from the beacon, an alert is triggered in the form of a notification to a caregiver.
To find more information on senior-friendly technology, visit Bethesda’s Technology blog.
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