The collaboration formed last year by tech giants GE and Intel to advance telehealth solutions has set its sights on homebound seniors.
Intel-GE Care Innovations has announced the launch of CareInnovations Connect, a home-based digital device designed to keep seniors in touch with caregivers, family members and friends while providing them with social networking tools, wellness resources, medication compliance reminders and interactive games.
“Research has shown that loneliness, as a health risk factor, is twice as detrimental as being obese and equal to the risk of smoking cigarettes and alcoholism,” said Louis Burns, chief executive officer of Care Innovations, in a press release. “With Connect, we’re helping senior service providers overcome this issue by helping them identify major health deterioration in their members, while enabling seniors to stay engaged and live more socially connected lives.”
The new offering targets a growing group of people – aging Baby Boomers – who want to stay at home and lead independent lives, but still need access to healthcare services and resources. The device includes a portal that allows caregivers and others to quickly assess seniors' healthcare needs, while giving them easy access to the communication and information tools, custom-designed wellness surveys and games and community information.
Evangelical Homes of Michigan, which serves older adults in the southeast part of the state, has been beta testing Connect for close to a year.
“We adopted Connect as part of our LifeChoice Solutions program, which serves older adults who live in their own homes,” said Denise Rabidoux, the organization’s president and chief executive officer, in a press release. “Since social isolation and loneliness are common experiences for many older adults, we chose Connect to assist us in enhancing the interaction and service between our Lifestyle coaches and clients. It lets our clients feel engaged and cared for on a daily basis, making it especially relevant and effective for our members.”
“Technology is one of LeadingAge’s five big ideas to help empower people to live fully as they age,” added Larry Minnix, president and chief executive officer of LeadingAge, an association of 5,400 not-for-profit organizations focused on providing services for seniors. “Through collaborations between technology developers, aging services providers and, most importantly, the seniors that we serve, together we can develop innovative technology solutions and deliver them into the homes of older adults to help them to maintain their health, happiness and independence. Care Innovations and Evangelical Homes of Michigan are to be commended for being great pioneers together in a program like this – an example of the collaborative spirit that makes our country so great and gives all of us hope for expanding the world of possibilities for aging.”
Connect is the third major product release for Care Innovations, which was formally introduced last August and launched this past January. In March, the company received FDA market clearance for the Intel Health Guide Express, making the virtual care coordination platform available on consumer-based off-the-shelf computers. In May, the company rolled out the Care Innovations Guide, offering healthcare organizations a platform for virtual care coordination. And in June, the Care Innovations Guide was made available to the European market on Windows 7 compatible devices.
