How a German Tech-project Helps Seniors Navigate Their Daily Lives

An innovative German project means to help senior citizens in the province of North Rhine-Westphalia by integrating smart technology in their daily routine to remind them to do their chores and to take better care of their health.

The European Union regularly invests in programs aiming to better the lives of senior citizens across various countries, and this project is the latest addition to the list. Titled “Geriatric Careable Media”, the project is estimated to cost 1,161,171 euro, with most of the money being provided by the EU’s European Regional Development Fund.

We like centring ideas that benefit the elderly and do so in a respectable manner which is why we wanted to tell you more about this fun and exciting project. Find out what it entails here and how it changes the lives of our golden generation.

Project Goal

The goal of the “Geriatric Careable Media” project is simple – make the lives of senior citizens easier and more enjoyable.

The number of senior citizens globally is rising, with the number of people above the age of 65 years expected to reach 16% of the global population by 2050, according to some estimates. Elderly people are steadily becoming a big target group which necessitates the creation of technology tailored to their needs and preferences.

Additionally, the structure of the family unit is changing, whereas adult children tend to live far from their family homes or are too busy to take care of their elderly parents. However, senior citizens, especially those in Europe, reject the idea of moving to an assisted living facility and instead want to live in their own homes and be as self-sufficient as possible.

The project managers recognise this situation and they hope that their invention can better aid seniors who want to remain living at home with little to no external help. The creators want seniors to feel comfortable living alone and to not become anxious about the prospect of doing their daily chores.

How the Project Works

It’s no lie that with aging certain tasks feel more tiresome, and unfortunately, one’s memory can also deteriorate which is the most common reason behind requiring extra help around the house. Still, that help need not be an actual person when we live in the digital age.

The people behind the “Geriatric Careable Media” project conducted research in their attempt to find what sort of digital media the seniors respond to in the most favourable manner.

They found that senior citizens are more likely to use technology (mostly speaking about applications) which operates in a game-like way and rewards them for completing various tasks.

Once they discovered that, the creators decided to focus on “gamification” or making software which works on the same principle as beloved games in order to make it more appealing to their target audience, the elderly.

The project partners devised intelligent software which could connect various devices, including medical sensors and different smart home devices, and allow for them to be operated via smartphones, tablets, computers, smartwatches, and television.

The interface is senior-friendly, displaying everything in a comprehensive and intelligible way, and it helps senior citizens easily navigate all their devices with a few simple clicks. The project drew inspiration from different technological fields of health, communication and entertainment.

The dedicated software works on the principle of games, rewarding users with points and challenging them to engage in various competitions.

Senior citizens would be rewarded in the system for completing tasks such as measuring their blood pressure or ordering groceries online. The application will also work as a reminder for them to do said tasks, thereby removing the need of a carer to do that for them. The project managers hope that their modular system not only makes the seniors’ daily life easier, but also more exciting and rewarding. We personally believe that if the project is successful in delivering what it promises, senior citizens could only benefit from it.

The Future of the Project

Currently, the beta version of the “Geriatric Careable Media” is being implemented in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia where senior citizens test the promising modular system. There are no news concerning the state of the project or the response to it, but the project managers have big hopes for the future.

They share their hopes of the project becoming a sustainable business model that could be marketed around the world, and thus help many more elderly people navigate their daily routine.

They also note that their hypothetical success could lead to more businesses being interested in developing the technology alongside them which would consequently lead to an improvement and expansion of the model, meaning that it could eventually include more features such as digital voice assistants and augmented reality.

Hopefully, senior citizens would one day be able to connect to all businesses like pharmacies and doctor offices after a few clicks on their mobile device, or at least that’s what the project partners project.

We will keep you updated in case there are any new developments of the promising “Geriatric Careable Media” modular system.