With more than a fifth of all Canadians projected to be aged 65 or older prior to 2030 (according to Statistics Canada) and up to 6% of the population anticipated to be aged 80 or older within that same period, experts at Carleton University, the Bruyère Research Institute, the National Research Council Canada (NRC) and Best Buy Health are currently exploring how enhanced smart-home monitoring technologies could play a key role in keeping seniors in their homes longer and improving their overall health and quality of life as they age.

As Canada continues down the path towards an aging population with increased health care costs and needs, smart home integration for seniors may be a crucial step in establishing sustainable care for the future, while helping older adults live more independently by providing caregivers with valuable data that can help identify changes in daily functioning and inform possible health needs.

In this talk – moderated by Dr. Amaya Arcelus, Director of the NRC’s Aging in Place Challenge Program – event panelists Dr. Rafik Goubran, Carleton’s Vice-President (Research & International), Dr. Frank Knoefel, Bruyère Research Institute physician, Dr. Heidi Sveistrup, CEO and Chief Scientific Officer at Bruyère Research Institute and Vice-President, Bruyère Continuing Care, and Sarah Aghvami, Director of Best Buy Health, will discuss the benefits of in-home sensor-based smart technologies that can monitor numerous aspects of older adults’ health, safety and well-being. In outlining their collaborative research, the panel will identify how sensor data can help caregivers identify seniors’ health needs and lead to informed care decisions. They will also discuss important privacy considerations, along with broader applications of health-based smart home monitoring, such as assisting persons with disabilities and enabling greater personal health awareness among the general population.