INTRODUCTION

The United Nations estimates that between 2020 and 2050, the share of the population aged 60 and older will increase in every country. At the same time, in many countries, increased life expectancy and declining birth rates are pushing up the average age of the population.

Low birth rates and an aging population combined means that soon, the number of people needing long-term care will dramatically increase. With the entire population aging and the number of workers who can provide aid-decreasing, the long-term care industry is facing a labor shortage issue. Thankfully, with modern technology, many of the industry’s problems can be solved without increasing costs or decreasing patients’ well-being.

CHALLENGES

The labor shortage is one of the main challenges that the long-term care industry is facing. Technology is needed to help institutional care providers address the problems of the limited workforce, patient monitoring, rising costs, and efficiency.

In the near future, the demand for long-term care will surpass the supply of qualified professionals who are able to deliver the needed services; this, in turn, will lead to major personnel deficiencies of more than 30 percent. In some parts of the world, this shortage of health care professionals is already noticeable as there are not enough trained candidates to fill open positions for direct caregivers to the elderly.

Traditionally, long-term care employees’ salary has been less than workers in acute health care settings, and this is a factor in the shortage of workers in the long-term care system. Moreover, the rapid employee turnover that is common in some long-term care settings also contributes to inadequate staffing levels and compromises the quality of care provided.

Lack of qualified personnel and high turnover pose a danger both to industry and patients.

SOLUTION

Modern technology, like Ability’s Pose Estimation Smart AI Camera, is the answer to many problems that the industry is facing.

The camera’s pose detection model can be used for critical functions such as intruder detection, fall detection, and face recognition.

The technology is optimized for terminal devices, so that it can do the work by itself, without the need for expensive external hosts or other devices.

By using API, notifications about patients’ status can be sent directly via the cloud.

Innovative face recognition technology provides automatic roll call of the elderly while automatic intrusion detection prevents the elderly from entering restricted areas like nursing stations or stairwells. Plus, through the use of fall detection, nurses can be immediately notified of patients’ falls.

Finally, the system can be fully integrated with the current long-term care system to provide ease of transition and enhance existing services.

RESULTS

• Ability’s Pose Estimation Smart AI Camera brings several benefits to the long-term care industry. Thanks to the automation of necessary standard procedures, long term care facilities can reduce costs without sacrificing patients’ welfare and improve efficiency without hiring more staff.
• Fall detection technology allows prompt handling of accidents, which in turn can reduce costs (medical costs, death benefits, etc.) and staff workload. Safer environments and faster response to accidents are also beneficial to elderly patients’ well-being.
• Fully automated intrusion detection prevents elderly patients from entering restricted or potentially dangerous parts of the facility like stairwells or balconies, reducing the accident rate and decreasing staff’s overload.
• A fully automatic roll call for the elderly is another feature that helps both patients and facilities. For patients, it provides effortless roll call; for facilities, it reduces costs by reducing the time needed for everyday check-ups.
• Looking ahead, smart healthcare technology will continue to play a crucial role in advancing the long-term care industry. With data collection and analysis, services can be further optimized to fit patient’s needs. This leads to better quality of life for patients and helps reassure family members that their loved ones will be well taken care of.