Originally posted on ABC
PUBLISHED: Jun 29, 2020 01:30:54 PM IST
If you are the caregiver of an elderly family member, we empathize with the challenges you face on a daily basis to ensure the health and safety of your loved one.
Whether you provide care locally or remotely, there is typically a need for 24/7 availability and a wide range of daily responsibilities involved. For remote families, the anxiety of not being close by and having to constantly be available by car or by plane is distressing.
Depending on your financial stability staying in retirement communities or assisted living facilities is a possible option for your elderly family member. The benefits range from around the clock care, medical assistance, and a social community for your loved ones.
While providers do a great job of providing high-quality care, they operate under resource constraints because of the severe shortage of caregiver workers worldwide. Scaling quality of care while being cost-effective is a priority to keep businesses in operation.
As the world’s elderly population ages, the demand for care from family caregivers or professional providers is expected to rise significantly. By 2060, the number of senior citizens may exceed 98 million or over 20% of the population.
The rising cost of care and diminishing insurance coverage is requiring families to take extraordinary measures including giving up their jobs or reducing working hours to care for their loved ones or even working full time in addition to the caregiving responsibilities. It is common for family members to take turns with their caregiving duties, which can result in strained relationships.
The impact of COVID-19
The healthcare industry, including the elderly care industry, garnered a lot of attention as the Coronavirus pandemic hit the world this year with fatality rates estimated at over 20% for age 60+. This pandemic has exposed the extreme vulnerability that the elderly face during this outbreak. Restrictions on visitations, social distancing, and isolation caused major inconveniences to the families, caregivers, and providers alike. Given the risks of exposure, it is expected that social distancing will continue to prevail for the elderly. With the advancements of technology and AI, it can make for an easier and safer environment for quality of care.
Families will have to continue to stay in touch to fulfill social needs, but also for monitoring of elderly health and well-being until a vaccine or a long term cure is available. Zemplee can help overcome social distancing while providing families with updates and peace of mind that their loved ones are safe.
Facility owners and administrators can benefit in a similar way. By reducing the number of caregiver visits to essential only visits, they can help protect both the elderly and caregivers.
The Elderly Need Technological Solutions Now
We now live in the age of the Internet of Things in which millions of devices ranging from phones to “smart” cars, refrigerators, and even entire city infrastructures in constant communication. This allows people to access information and do many other activities at any time, from anywhere, on devices of all types. Additionally, innovation in machine learning allows those devices to make decisions and initiate processes, often without the need for any human input at all.
This new digital world has profound implications for the healthcare industry, specifically for the elderly care industry. Additionally, it can play an instrumental role in driving down the cost of care, which is significantly higher in the elderly population. Eldercare – the fastest-growing segment of the global healthcare market is expected to surpass $300B in the US by 2025, and is on the brink of a much needed digital revolution.
AI-Powered App Zemplee is the Solution You’ve Been Waiting For
Zemplee is the world’s leading AI-powered application revolutionizing elderly care. Zemplee’s state of the art IOT and Machine learning technology helps the elderly live in their own homes or in a facility with greater self-sufficiency while giving their family members or caregivers peace of mind.
Zemplee uses a combination of non-invasive, non-intrusive motion, ambiance, voice and optionally video-based sensing technology to monitor the health and well being of the elderly – all without the need of a wearable device. It helps in providing the highest degree of personalized care to the elderly while giving loved ones and caregivers peace of mind.
Who is Zemplee For?
Zemplee is being used across a variety of organizations and families for their elderly family members aged 72- 100+, many of who live independently. What makes Zemplee work so well is that it is a platform which can be customized to meet the needs of many administrative level functions while keeping its main priority of the health and well being of the elderly and peace of mind for their caregivers. Zemplee enables keeping the families connected and updated 24/7.
Zemplee’s passive monitoring system and a real-time live view feature provide visibility into the daily lifestyle and activity of elders. In addition, it also provides caregivers and clinical or administrative staff insights into changing activity patterns and early indications of deterioration, so medical or behavioral remedial actions can be taken proactively.
“As we stand at this juncture weighing in on how the world would change after Coronavirus, we are excited for the opportunity for Zemplee and to be able to bring highly impactful solutions to elderly care” – says Aparna Pujar, Founder and CEO of Zemplee.
“Our customers really like the fact that there is nothing to wear on their person. Once installed, Zemplee passively works in the background and our elderly clients go about their day to day activities, with no reminders needed to carry or charge a gadget.”
“Zemplee is a company that has the right product, at the right place, at the right time to address the issues of not only quality of elder care, but the quality of life,” said Gary A. Fowler, Co-Founder of Zemplee.
Learn more about Zemplee: www.zemplee.com
