Twelve Smartphone Applications for Health Management of Older Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Empowering Potential of the My Assistive Technology Guide: Exploring Experiences and User Perspectives

The use of assistive technology (AT) devices enhances older adults' function in daily activities. However, the lack of awareness of AT among potential AT users has been identified as a major barrier to its adoption. This study aimed to assess the quality of the Mi Guía de Asistencia Tecnológica (MGAT) web app, which provides information on AT, from the perspective of older Latinos with physical disabilities, and to explore their experience using the MGAT. We employed a convergent parallel mixed-method design involving 12 older Latinos living in Puerto Rico. In Phase I, the researchers trained the participants in the use of the MGAT. In Phase II, participants were encouraged to use it for 30 days. In Phase III, the participants completed the User Mobile Application Rating Scale and individual interviews, analyzed with descriptive statistics and a directed thematic content analysis. The quality of the MGAT was rated high in both the objective (mean = 3.99; SD = 0.7) and subjective (mean = 4.13; SD = 1.1) domains. Qualitative data revealed the MGAT was accessible, usable, desirable, credible, useful, and valuable to increasing older Latinos' AT knowledge, function, and autonomy. The MGAT has the potential to increase AT awareness and adoption among older adults.

Impact of smart device use on objective and subjective health of older adults: findings from four provinces in China

Background

The digital divide has grown because of the deepening digitalization of the Chinese society and the intersection between high-end technology and the age structure. Older adults show an increasing level of weakness in digital life integration. What digital development can bring to older adults is a pressing concern.

Objective

This study aims to investigate how smart device use affects older adults' health status and offers an empirical reference for improving their digital literacy and health.

Methods

The data in this study were collected from an offline survey conducted from December 2021 to April 2022, which obtained 1110 valid samples of older adults This study used a multivariate ordered logit model, mediating effect model, and heterogeneity test to analyze the impact of smart device use on the health status of older adults.

Results

Smart device use has a significant positive effect on the self-rated, physical, and psychological health of older adults, and this positive effect is more pronounced among older adults living in urban areas or with a higher age. The average net effect of smart devices on each health status of older adults is 0.161 for self-rated health, 0.155 for physical health, and 0.071 for psychological health. In-depth research found that older adults' attitudes toward smart devices played a mediating role in the influence of smart device use on self-rated and psychological health respectively.

Conclusions

The study found that smart device use had a positive effect on the health status of older adults and that the performance expectations and individualized needs of older adults exhibited an effective linkage between smart devices and health status. Smart device use could improve the overall health of older adults, especially the urban and low-age older adults. Promoting the understanding of the practicality of smart devices for older adults and the aging-oriented transformation of smart devices is an effective way to improve the health status of older adults. The findings provide theoretical support for the wide application of smart devices in older adults, and can effectively help eHealth practitioners implement accurate geriatric health support strategies.

Research on the influence mechanism and governance mechanism of digital divide for the elderly on wisdom healthcare: The role of artificial intelligence and big data

With the rapid development of digital information technology, life has become more convenient for people; however, the digital divide for the elderly was even more serious, so they became a forgotten group in the internet age over time. Residents' demand for healthcare is rising, but the wisdom healthcare service supported by digital information technology is less acceptable to the elderly due to the digital divide. Based on the knowledge gap theory and combining the value perception and satisfaction model, this study explores the influence of the digital divide for the elderly on wisdom healthcare satisfaction and takes the perceived value of wisdom healthcare as a mediator, and artificial intelligence and big data as moderators into the research framework. Based on the data of 1,052 elderly people in China, the results show that the digital divide for the elderly has a negative influence on wisdom healthcare satisfaction and perceived value. Moreover, it is found that wisdom healthcare perception value mediated the relationship between the digital divide for the elderly and the wisdom healthcare satisfaction, which enhances the negative effect of the digital divide for the elderly on wisdom healthcare satisfaction. Furthermore, the moderating effect of artificial intelligence and big data on the relationship between the digital divide for the elderly and the perceived value of wisdom healthcare is opposite to that between the perceived value of wisdom healthcare and wisdom healthcare satisfaction. Therefore, this study has a reference value for the development and optimization of smart medical industry.