The WHO Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre/WKC) has concluded its series of policy briefs on long-term care financing: lessons for low- and middle-income settings with a brief on “Technologies for promoting healthy ageing”.
Key messages:
- Technologies can maintain or improve functional capacities that enhance older people’s ability to carry out everyday activities, which can delay the need for intensive long-term care (LTC) services.
- Assistive technology can address limitations in activities of daily living among older adults by mitigating the impact of common problems, including impaired vision, hearing, mobility, self-care, communication and cognition.
- Ageing in place can be supported by technologies that enable people to live safely and independently; technology that detects falls and accidents can delay the need for informal and formal LTC services.
- Including technologies in publicly funded LTC benefits may encourage their adoption and ensure the necessary support for effective implementation and appropriate use.
- Technologies hold the potential to enhance the productivity of the LTC workforce; however, relatively few LTC systems have invested in such technology, and its promise remains unrealized.
WKC conducts research about innovations in service delivery models and sustainable financing to accelerate progress towards Universal Health Coverage in the context of population ageing. Find the full series on long-term care financing here.